The Situation of Comedy...........................17
Stand-up, improv, sketch: How the New
Orleans comedy scene is coming into
its own.
Seven Things to Do This Week .................5
Henry Rollins; the Shack Shakers; Salome;
and more

News.........................................................................7
Forget all the talk about small donors — just
196 people have donated 80 percent of all
the money going into presidential candidates’ Super-PAC campaign chests.
Bouquets + Brickbats.....................................7
Heroes and zeroes
C’est What? ..........................................................7
Gambit’s Web poll
Scuttlebutt .........................................................10
News in brief
Commentary ..................................................... 11
Polls apart: The national Republican Party
finds itself in a political pickle

Clancy DuBos...................................................12
Bernadette D’Souza, New Orleans’ first
Family Court Judge
Blake Pontchartrain......................................15
The New Orleans know-it-all

Gambit (ISSN 1089-3520) is published weekly by Gambit Communications, Inc., 3923 Bienville St.,
New Orleans, LA 70119. (504) 486-5900. We cannot be held responsible for the return of unsolicited
manuscripts even if accompanied by a SASE. All material published in Gambit is copyrighted:
Copyright 2012 Gambit Communications, Inc. All rights reserved.

Forget all the talk about small
donors — just 196 people have
donated 80 percent of the
money going into Super-PAC
campaign chests this year.

spent his Mardi Gras performing in the
East Room of the White House for President Barack and First Lady Michelle Obama. Andrews was
part of the president’s “Red,
White and Blues” concert for
Black History Month. Among
the other performers: B.B.
King, Mick Jagger and Jeff Beck. “I hear
Trombone Shorty brought some beads up
from New Orleans,” Obama joked. The
concert was taped for later airing on PBS.

The Lower 9th Ward
Center for Sustainable
Engagement and
Development (CSED)

By Ari Berman, TomDispatch.com

was honored by the Sierra Club Board of
Directors for its efforts to restore Bayou
Bienvenue, the 12-mile stretch
of cypress and tupelo swampland between Orleans and
St. Bernard parishes. CSED
works for sustainable recovery
in the Lower Ninth Ward.

A

The New Orleans
Police Department

state’s 99 counties — the Republican candidates and their allied
Super-PACs have all but abandoned retail campaigning and
grassroots politicking. They have chosen instead to spend their
war chests on TV.
The results already can be seen in the first primaries and
caucuses: an onslaught of money and a demobilized electorate.
Compared to the 2008 primary, turnout was down 25 percent
in Florida, and that, this time around, fewer Republicans have
shown up in every state that’s voted so far, except for
South Carolina.
More than 300 Super-PACs are registered with the Federal
Election Commission. The one financed by the greatest number
of small donors belongs to Stephen Colbert, who’s turned his
TV show The Colbert Report into a brilliant commentary on the
Super-PAC landscape. Colbert’s satirical Super-PAC, Americans for a Better Tomorrow, Tomorrow, has raised $1 million
from 31,595 people, including 1,600 people who gave one
dollar apiece.
Otherwise the Super-PACs on both sides of the aisle are
page 8

c’est
What do you think of
roping off Mardi Gras
parade-watching
space in advance of
parade days?

(NOPD) did a sterling job during the final
weekend of Carnival. According to Chief
Ronal Serpas, crimes against
people were down by 9
percent from 2011 and there
was a 6 percent decrease in
property crimes. Police were
immediately on the scene of
the few violent incidents. Unlike previous
years, there were no skirmishes reported
between Indians and cops at Fat Tuesday
celebrations.

Bam Margera,

one of the stars of MTV’s Jackass, held a
breast cancer benefit at Republic the night
before Lundi Gras. Less than
24 hours later, Margera got
himself detained by NOPD at
a hotel in the French Quarter.
He told photographers he
was taken into custody for
“swimming in a pool with all my clothes
on.” An NOPD spokesperson told Gambit
that Margera was held at the 8th District
station, but the hotel decided not to
press charges.

?
Vote on “C’est What?” at www.bestofneworleans.com

46%

Glad it’s illegal

THiS WEEK’S
question:

43%

Getting out of hand

12%

It’s fine

Do you give up
something for Lent?

Gambit > bestofneworleans.com > february 28 > 2012

t a time when it’s become a cliche to say that Occupy Wall
Street has changed the nation’s political conversation
— drawing attention to the struggles of the 99 percent —
electoral politics and the 2012 presidential election have become
almost exclusively defined by the 1 percent. Or, to be more precise,
the .0000063 percent. Those are the 196 individual donors who
have provided nearly 80 percent of the money raised by SuperPACs (political action committees) in 2011 by giving $100,000 or
more each.
These political action committees, spawned by the Supreme
Court’s 5-4 Citizens United decision in January 2010, can raise
unlimited amounts of money from individuals, corporations, or
unions for the purpose of supporting or opposing a political
candidate. In theory, Super-PACs are legally prohibited from
coordinating directly with a candidate, though in practice they’re
just a murkier extension of political campaigns, performing all
the functions of a traditional campaign without any of the corresponding accountability.
If 2008 was the year of the small donor, when many political
pundits predicted that the fusion of grassroots organizing and
cyber-activism would transform how campaigns were run, then
2012 is “the year of the big donor,” when a candidate is only as
good as the amount of money in his Super-PAC. “In this campaign, every candidate needs his own billionaires,” wrote Jane
Mayer of The New Yorker.
“This really is the selling of America,” says former presidential
candidate and former Democratic Party chairman Howard Dean.
“We’ve been sold out by five [Supreme Court] justices thanks to
the Citizens United decision.”
“We’re going to beat money power with people power,” former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich said in January, after
losing Florida’s Republican primary to former Massachusetts
Gov. Mitt Romney. Gingrich made that statement even though
his candidacy is being propped up by a Super-PAC funded
by two $5 million donations from Las Vegas casino magnate
Sheldon Adelson.
Florida has proven the battle royal of the Super-PACs thus
far. There, the pro-Romney Super-PAC, Restore Our Future,
outspent the pro-Gingrich Super-PAC, Winning Our Future,
five to one. In the last week of the campaign alone, Romney and
his allies ran 13,000 TV ads in Florida, compared to only 200
for Gingrich. Ninety-two percent of the ads were negative, with
two-thirds attacking Gingrich, who, ironically enough, had been
a fervent advocate of the Citizens United decision.
With the exception of Rep. Ron Paul’s underdog candidacy
and former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum’s upset victory in
Iowa — where he spent almost no money but visited all of the

financed by the 1 percent of the 1
percent. Romney’s Restore Our
Future super-PAC, founded by the
general counsel of his 2008 campaign, has led the herd, raising $30
million, 98 percent from donors
who gave $25,000 or more. Ten
million dollars came from just 10
donors who gave $1 million each.
These included three hedge-fund
managers and Houston Republican Bob Perry, the main funder
behind the swift Boat veterans
for Truth in 2004, whose ads did
such an effective job of destroying
former sen. John Kerry’s electoral
prospects. sixty-five percent of the
funds that poured into Romney’s
super-PAC in the second half
of 2011 came from the finance,
insurance and real estate sector,
otherwise known as the people
who brought you the economic
meltdown of 2007-2008.
Romney’s campaign has raised
twice as much as his super-PAC,
which is more than you can say for
santorum, whose super-PAC —
Red, white and Blue — has raised
and spent more than the candidate
himself. Until last month, 40 percent of the $2 million that has so far
gone into Red, white & Blue came
from just one man, Foster Friess, a
hedge-fund billionaire and Christian evangelical from wyoming.
in the wake of santorum’s upset
victories in Colorado, Minnesota
and Missouri on February 7, Friess
told The New York Times he’d
recruited $1 million for santorum’s
super-PAC from another unnamed
donor and upped his own giving,
though he wouldn’t say by how
much. (Last week, a campaign
finance report seemed to show the
donor was Lake Charles businessman william Dore, who donated $1
million to santorum’s super-PAC in
January.)
For now, Adelson has pledged to
stay with Gingrich’s flagging campaign, but he’s also signaled that if
the former speaker of the House
goes down, he’ll be ready to donate
even more super-PAC money to a
Romney presidential bid. And keep
in mind that there’s nothing in the
post-Citizens United law to stop
a donor like Adelson from giving
$100 million, or for that matter,
however much he likes.
Before Citizens United, the maximum amount one person could
give to a candidate was $2,500;
for a political action committee,
$5,000; for a political party committee, $30,800. Now, the sky’s the
limit for a super-PAC, and any donor can give an unlimited contribution to a 501(c)4 — outfits defined
by the iRs as “civic leagues or

news + VIewS
loosen up the classics

organizations not organized for
profit but operated exclusively for
the promotion of social welfare,”
and to make matters worse, that
contribution will remain eternally
secret. In this way, 501(c)4s are
gaining influence as “shadow
Super-PACs.”
A recent analysis by The Washington Post found that, at a cost
of $24 million, 40 percent of the
TV ads in the presidential race so
far came from these tax-exempt
“social welfare” groups. The Karl
Rove-founded American Crossroads, a leading conservative
Super-PAC attacking Democratic
candidates and President Barack
Obama’s administration, also runs
a 501(c)4 called Crossroads GPS.
It’s raised twice as much money as
its sister group, all from donations,
the sources of which will remain
hidden from American voters.

$745 million campaign haul from
small donors, while Rep. Ron Paul,
R-Texas, raised 39 percent from
small dollars on the Republican
side. Much of Paul’s campaign
was financed by online “money
bombs,” when enthusiastic supporters generated millions of
dollars in brief, coordinated bursts.
The amount of money raised in
small donations by Obama, in
particular, raised hopes that his
campaign had found a way to
break the death grip of big donors
on American politics.
Despite all the media attention
about Obama’s small donors, the
candidate still raised the bulk of his
money from big givers. (Typically,
these days, incumbent members
of Congress raise less than 10
percent of their campaign funds
from small donors, with those
numbers actually dropping when
you reach the gubernatorial and
state legislative levels.) Obama’s
top contributors included employees of Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan
Chase and Citigroup. For obvious
reasons, the campaign chose to

yellow
orange
aqua
black

clothes + accessories
7732 maple 865 .
mon - sat 10-6

9625

Gambit > bestofneworleans.com > february 28 > 2012

The influence of Super-PACs
was already evident by November
2010, just nine months after the
Supreme Court’s ruling. John
Nichols and Robert McChesney
of The Nation note that, of the 53
competitive House
districts where
The public interest journalism
Rove’s Crossroads
organization outwebsite ProPublica has been
spent Democratic
charting
the top individual donors
candidates in 2010,
Republicans won
to the 12 biggest Super-PACs.
51. As it turned out,
the last election
To see the results in an interactive chart, go to
was a test run
http://projects.propublica.org/
for the monetary
extravaganza that
pactrack/contributions/tree
is 2012.
Republicans
To see the results as a list, go to
are banking on
http://projects.propublica.org/
that Super-PAC
pactrack/#contributions=all
advantage again
this year, when
the costs of the
emphasize the small donors over
presidential contest and all other
the big ones in its narrative, as it
races for federal posts will soar
continues to do in 2012.
from $5 billion in 2008 to as high
Interestingly enough, both
as $7 billion by November. (The
Obama and Paul actually raised
2000 election cost a “mere” $3
more money from small donors
billion.) In other words, the amount
in 2011 than they did in 2008 —
spent this election season will be
48 percent and 52 percent of
roughly the equivalent of the gross
their totals, respectively. But in
domestic product of Haiti.
the Super-PAC era that money
In June 2003, presidential canno longer has the same impact.
didate Howard Dean shocked the
even Dean doubts that his antipolitical establishment by raising
establishment, Internet-fueled
$828,000 in one day over the Incampaign from 2004 would be as
ternet, with an average donation of
successful today. “Super-PACs
$112. Dean, in fact, got 38 percent
have made a grassroots campaign
of his campaign’s total funds from
less effective,” he says. “You can
donations of $200 or less, planting
still run a grassroots campaign
the seeds for what many forecast
but the problem is you can be overwould be a small-donor revolution
whelmed now on television and by
in American politics.
Four years later, Obama raised
page 10
a third of his record-breaking

dirty mailers being sent out. ... it’s a very
big change from 2008.”
The campaign has 445 “bundlers”
(dubbed “volunteer fundraisers” by the
campaign), who gather money from
their wealthy friends and package it for
Obama. They have raised at least $74.4
million for Obama and the Democratic
National Committee (DNC) in 2011.
sixty-one of those bundlers raised
$500,000 or more. Obama held 73
fundraisers in 2011 and 13 last month
alone, where the price of admission was
almost always $35,800 a head.
An increase in small donor contributions and a surge of big money fundraisers still wasn’t enough, however, to
give Obama an advantage over Republicans in the money chase. That’s why
the Obama campaign, until recently
adamantly against super-PACs, suddenly relented and signaled its support
for a pro-Obama super-PAC called
Priorities UsA.
A day after the announcement that
the campaign, like its Republican
rivals, would super-PAC it up, Messina
spoke at the members-only Core Club
in Manhattan and “assured a group of
Democratic donors from the financial
services industry that Obama won’t
demonize wall street as he stresses
populist appeals in his re-election campaign,” reported Bloomberg Businessweek. “Messina told the group of wall
street donors that the president plans
to run against Romney, not the industry
that made the former governor of Massachusetts millions.”
in other words, don’t expect a
convincing return to the theme of the
people versus the powerful in campaign
2012, even though Romney, if the nominee, would be particularly vulnerable
to that line of attack. After all, so far his
campaign has raised only 9 percent of
its campaign contributions from small
donors, well behind both sen. John McCain (21 percent in 2008) and former
President George w. Bush (26 percent
in 2004). in the fourth quarter of 2011,
Romney outraised Obama among the
top firms on wall street by a margin
of 11 to 1. His top three campaign
contributions are from employees of
Goldman sachs ($496,430), JPMorgan ($317,400) and Morgan stanley
($277,850).
in a recent segment of his show,
Colbert noted that half of the money
($67 million) raised by super-PACs in
2011 had come from just 22 people.
“That’s 7 one-millionths of 1 percent,”
or roughly .0000063 percent, Colbert
said, while spraying a fire extinguisher
on his fuming calculator. “so, Occupy
wall street, you’re going to want to
change those signs.”
— Ari Berman is a contributing writer
for The Nation magazine and an Investigative Journalism Fellow at The
Nation Institute.

scuttlebutt
Quote of the week

“To see thousands of people clamoring up to a float hoping, begging for just
one single string of beads contains some
kind of pure desperate joy that doesn’t
happen anywhere but in New Orleans.
The Krewe members that actually pay —
and pay handsomely — for Mardi Gras to
happen don’t get anything out of it except
the pleasure of having thrown one of the
best parties in the world.” — Dave Thier
in Forbes, in a story titled, “The Business
of Mardi Gras.”

Jobs come, Jobs Go
LoyoLa PostaL service FaciLity
to cLose By eND oF May
Less than a week after Gov. Bobby
Jindal and Mayor Mitch Landrieu held
a joint press conference downtown to
announce that Ge Capital would be
building an “information technology
center” in New Orleans — adding an
estimated 300 jobs by 2015 — Landrieu
got some bad news on the jobs front.
After a five-month study, the U.s. Postal
service (UsPs) has decided to close its
large mail-processing center on Loyola
Avenue by the end of May. Mail processing and sorting for the New Orleans
region will move to Baton Rouge.
For months now, Landrieu and other
public officials have been fighting the
closure, which the mayor says will affect
880 workers. Last september, he said,
“it does not make sense to pull public
jobs out of this booming corridor where
we’re leveraging public investments in
the streetcar to attract over $1 billion
in private investments and development.” (The mail-processing center is
on the new Loyola Avenue streetcar line,
which is currently under construction.)
Landrieu also held a public meeting in
November in an attempt to convince the
UsPs to keep the facility open.
some of the current UsPs employees will be offered transfers to other
postal offices, but the number of jobs
lost in New Orleans is still unclear. —
KeviN ALLMAN

bed bugged
LsU LaMBasteD at coUNciL
As LsU interim Hospital prepares to
close a number of its psychiatric care
facilities and lay off 110 employees, District A Councilwoman Susan Guidry
told state and hospital officials that New
Orleans already has among the fewest
adult psychiatric beds per capital in
the country.
LsU announced $15 million in midyear cuts to the New Orleans hospital
last month. The university is expected to
close nine of its 38 inpatient psychiatric
beds and its full inpatient detox unit.
At a Feb. 23 City Council meeting,
Guidry said the city already had only
16.9 adult beds per 100,000 population
— 60 beds total — as of a March 2010
city-issued report. The report compared
New Orleans to five similarly sized cit-

ies: st. Louis, Atlanta, Memphis, Tenn.,
washington, D.C., and Cleveland. All
of those cities, the report notes, had at
least 45 adult beds per 100,000 people,
except for Cleveland, which had 25.1,
still more than New Orleans.
City officials, including Health Commissioner Dr. Karen DeSalvo, have
said that further closures would trigger a
public health crisis, increase crime and
result in more mentally ill patients being
locked up in Orleans Parish jails, which,
according to sheriff Marlin Gusman,
now have 60 full-service mental health
beds already filled to capacity. Prior to
Hurricane Katrina, the report says, there
were 214 beds (or 46 per 100,000).
The new LsU Hospital, not yet built,
will contain 60 inpatient mental health
beds — fewer than the 77 that were in
the old Charity Hospital it is replacing.
Dr. Anthony Speier of the state
Department of Health and Hospitals
told council members the state plans to
help the city alleviate the situation, in part
by developing a plan to shift more of its
mental health burden to outpatient facilities run by nonprofit providers.
“People in this city say we need more
beds. inpatient beds. B-e-D-s. … That’s
what i want you to take to Baton Rouge,”
District e Councilman Jon Johnson
said. — CHARLes MALDONADO

Four Dire Predictions
serioUs MeNtaL HeaLtH cUts
Dealing with the mentally ill after LsU
imposes $15 million in planned cuts
next month will eat up scarce police
and emergency responder resources,
destabilize interactions between police
officers and the mentally ill (possibly
resulting in fatal violence), increase
psychiatric patients in Orleans Parish jails and lead to “more work for the
Coroner’s Office,” Dr. Jeffrey Rouse,
chief psychiatrist for the New Orleans
Coroner’s Office, said at a Thursday
meeting of the New Orleans City
Council Health, education and social
services Committee.
Rouse said the cuts will produce a
situation much like the one the city saw
immediately after Hurricane Katrina.
Orleans Parish sheriff Marlin Gusman
said he can’t treat the mentally ill, either.
“Jail is not the place for mentally ill
people. To recover, to get better, it’s not
the place. … we have over 200 people
in our system who are on psychotropic
drugs,” and there are only 60 psychiatric
beds, Gusman said.
City officials who have spoken out
on the cuts have largely blamed Gov.
Bobby Jindal’s administration, though
the administration has pointed to LsU
for overspending. On Thursday, District
D Councilwoman Cynthia HedgeMorrell indicated she might even be
willing to sue the state. “why do you
think that the goose that lays the golden
egg for this state can keep taking this
abuse?” she said. “Maybe we need to
go to court. … i’m tired of talking.” —
CHARLes MALDONADO

commentAry

thinking out loud

Polls Apart
Romney said the nation had never seen
“the kind of attack on religious conscience, religious freedom, religious
tolerance that we’ve seen under Barack
Obama.” Earlier in the week, Santorum
called Obama “a president who is systematically trying to crush the traditional
Judeo-Christian values of America.” Really? That sort of bloody red meat might
play to the right wing, but Jindal was on
point when he said it would be a turnoff
to the general electorate.
Even more of a turnoff is the GOP’s
sudden focus on birth control, which
stemmed from a new federal policy requiring health insurance plans provided by
employers to cover contraception. (The
rule specifically exempted churches,
though not religiously affiliated employers such as hospitals.) Santorum found
himself scrambling for explanations
when a video, shot last October, showed
him declaring contraception “not OK,
because it’s a license to do things in the
sexual realm that is counter to how things

The GOP could
be playing
with fire even
discussing birth
control as a
political issue.

Gambit > bestofneworleans.com > february 28 > 2012

f the Republicans’ current pickle —
Who’s the most credible candidate
to run against President Barack
Obama in the fall? — seems familiar, it’s
probably because Louisianians have seen
something much like it before. After Sen.
David Vitter’s “very serious sin” scandal
in 2007, Democrats had more than three
years to mount a challenge to a man who
seemed eminently beatable. That didn’t
happen. The Dems ran U.S. Rep. Charlie
Melancon, D-Napoleonville, against Vitter
with no clear strategy or message. Vitter
was re-elected in 2010 with 57 percent of
the vote.
A similar scenario seems to be playing
out nationally this year between the GOP
and Obama, who appeared vulnerable
less than two years ago. But two things
happened along the way: The national
economy began turning around, and the
slate of GOP candidates has failed thus
far to either energize or unite the party.
Remember when the Tea Party was
supposed to reflect a new breed of voters, people whose sole concern was the
federal deficit and the economy? Riding
that sentiment, the GOP crushed the
Democrats in the 2010 midterm elections,
capturing 63 seats in the U.S. House of
Representatives and six in the U.S. Senate. But something changed on the political landscape since then. The GOP field
has been winnowed to four candidates:
former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney,
former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania, former Speaker of the House
Newt Gingrich and U.S. Rep. Ron Paul of
Texas. While each has a core of committed voters, none has inspired enough
voters to clinch the nomination. Except
for Paul, each has taken a turn at the top
of the polls, then been pulled down again
like a crawfish in a pot.
Gov. Bobby Jindal didn’t run, but
flopped as a handicapper by coming
out early for Texas Gov. Rick Perry, who
proved to be an incredible lightweight.
But Jindal seems to recognize his party’s
problem now. In an interview with Politico
on Feb. 23, hours before last week’s
Republican debate in Arizona, Jindal said,
“We can still be a party that’s for border
security and one that at the same time
says, ‘Hey, we’re not an anti-immigrant
party.’ We don’t need to change our
ideology. We need to be more articulate in
voicing the aspirational spirit of America.”
The governor added, “The party has
to offer compelling alternatives. Voters
may dislike [Obama] on spending, the
economy and ‘Obamacare,’ but they still
think he’s a nice person. Demonizing the
president is not gonna win the election.”
That reality seems to have escaped
the GOP frontrunners. At the debate
that night, Gingrich said Obama “voted
in favor of legalizing infanticide,” while

are supposed to be.” He also declared
his personal opposition to prenatal testing
— vital to the health of pregnant women
— telling supporters he was against it
“because free prenatal testing ends up in
more abortions.”
The GOP could be playing with fire
even discussing birth control as a political issue. Even in heavily Catholic and
conservative states like Louisiana, it’s a
nonstarter. In a CNN poll conducted Feb.
10-13, 81 percent of respondents disagreed with the statement “Using artificial
means of birth control is wrong” — as did
77 percent of Catholics. A Pew Research
Center poll that week found 85 percent of
respondents indicated contraception was
either morally acceptable or not a moral
issue at all. Worse for the GOP: An Associated Press poll taken Feb. 16-20 found
Obama beating any of the four candidates
in a hypothetical matchup — by eight to
10 points.
Anything can happen between now
and November, of course. For now, it
appears the GOP had three-and-a-half
years to find what Jindal called “compelling alternatives.” So far it hasn’t — and
voters are still looking.

11
69397.1_4.729x10.833_4c_Ad.indd 1

2/23/12 4:10 PM

clancy DuBos

Follow Clancy on Twitter: @clancygambit

politics

addressing Domestic Issues
new era begins this week when
Bernadette D’souza takes office
on Thursday, March 1, as the first
judge of Domestic section 1 at Civil District Court (CDC). D’souza will hear only
cases involving divorce, custody, spousal
support, child support, community property, paternity and civil protection orders in
domestic violence cases.
“There’s a growing trend across the
country for specialization of courts, especially in domestic or family law matters,”
D’souza told me recently. “I ran for judge
in 2004 on a platform of dedicating several
sections at Civil District Court to domestic
matters. For too many years those cases
were simply allotted to the newest judges,
and they got passed down every time a
vacancy occurred.”
That system sometimes led to inconsistent judgments, but it took an act of the
state Legislature to address the problem.
A statute enacted last year creates two
sections at CDC with dockets limited to
domestic matters. The law, authored by
former state sen. Julie Quinn, calls for the
next two vacant judgeships to be redesig-

nated as Domestic sections 1 and 2. The
same law creates domestic sections in
Jefferson Parish as well.
The first New orleans vacancy occurred
recently when former CDC section K
Judge Herbert Cade took office as the
newest judge at Traffic Court. D’souza
won the ensuing special election to
Cade’s seat when all of her opponents
withdrew. she now becomes not only
the first Domestic Court judge at CDC
but also the first Indian-American woman
judge in the state.
D’souza, 57, was born in Goa, India.
she moved to the u.s. in 1978 and graduated from Tulane Law school in 1992. she
spent her entire legal career representing
clients who could not afford private attorneys. That experience shaped her vision
of how the courts could provide easier
access for indigent litigants.
“I understand the resources that are
out there to help litigants when they come
before our court,” D’souza says. “sixty-five
to 70 percent of litigants that come into domestic court are pro se (self-represented)
litigants. … My vision is to have a kiosk at

the courthouse where self-represented
litigants can put in all their information and
file their petitions.”
CDC already has a help desk at which
self-represented clients can get limited
assistance. D’souza says she hopes the

court can find ways to take that assistance
to the next level. “I hope to partner with
the Access to Justice Committee of the
state Bar Association to provide more
assistance in domestic court. … so many
people come through Legal services that
we cannot represent them all. We have to
make it easier for people who are forced to
represent themselves.”
D’souza also hopes the trend toward
specialization of courts will enable the
city’s new Domestic Court to work more
closely with Juvenile Court, Criminal
Court and Municipal Court to help protect
children. “When children are involved in or
affected by domestic violence cases, the
matter goes to CDC to provide for custody
of the minor children,” she says. “I want to
have open communication with the other
courts so that there are no inconsistencies
in judgments granted.”
Domestic cases are stressful for attorneys as well as clients. Having judges
who hear only domestic matters will at
least give litigants hope that their cases
are being handled with some measure
of consistency.

Gambit > bestofneworleans.com > february 28 > 2012

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I was born at 1714 Harlem Ave. in
1951. The street is now Causeway Boulevard. Do you have any
pictures or info of the area around
1945 through the 1950s?
Brenda Carter

Hey Blake,

The lighthouse building on Camp
Street looks empty. What is the
story behind this unique building?
Interested in NOLA
Dear Interested,
The Lighthouse for the Blind had
its inception in 1911, after an accident
caused Tom Slough to lose his sight.
Slough opened classes for the blind at

The lighthouse was added to this
commercial property on Camp
Street in 1924, when the Louisiana
Commission for the Blind — later
called The Lighthouse for the
Blind — bought and occupied
the building.
PHOTO BY KANDACe POWeR GRAveS

chartered the next year. In 1922, some
operations moved from the annex to Calliope Street.
In 1924, the Louisiana Commission
for the Blind purchased and moved into
its own building at 734 Camp St. The
building was renovated, and a lighthouse
was added, modeled after the Milneburg
Lighthouse at the lakefront. In 1930, the
commission’s charter was amended, and
its name was changed to The Lighthouse
for the Blind of New Orleans.
The organization moved several more
times before it settled into its current location at 123 State St., but it left the lighthouse on Camp Street standing to remind
us of the 100 years The Lighthouse for the
Blind has played a role in improving the
lives of people with impaired vision and
their families.

Gambit > bestofneworleans.com > february 28 > 2012

Dear Brenda,
You can find some pretty
good aerial shots of the
area from 1955 at the
following website: www.
old-new-orleans.com/
NO_Metairie_1955.html.
By the late 19th century,
Bayou Metairie had all but
disappeared, but Metairie
Road followed the former
course of the bayou — as it
does today. Metairie Ridge
was still farmland with only
a few structures. South of
the ridge and north to the
lakeshore were swamps
and marshes.
As early as 1830, plans
for development were
drawn up for subdivisions
called Metairieburgh, Metairieville, Bath No. 1 and
No. 2, Oakland, Harlem
and Shrewsbury. Planners
hoped the New Orleans
and Nashville Railroad,
which crossed Metairie
and ran to the shore of Lake Pontchartrain, would spur interest in the area. The
railroad failed in 1844, however, and very
little settlement occurred.
Residential development finally occurred in Metairie after a streetcar line
was extended in 1915 beyond its former
ending point at the 17th Street Canal to
Shrewsbury, providing service into the city
of New Orleans. In addition, the swamps
and marshes were drained between Metairie Ridge and Lake Pontchartrain, and
folks left the city when land that previously
was uninhabitable became available at
prices lower than those in the city.
Before we knew it, the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway was built, and in its honor
Harlem Avenue, which ran from the Mississippi River to the lake, was changed to
Causeway Boulevard in November 1954.

Kingsley House. Four years later, Slough
and his associates formed the Louisiana
Commission for the Blind, which started
meeting at 1336 Camp St. The commission aimed to provide employment for
the blind.
In 1919, the group moved into offices
in the City Hall annex building, which it
called the Workshop for the Blind. The
Louisiana Commission for the Blind was

15

Gambit > bestofneworleans.com > february 28 > 2012

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nd when the lights come on, we’ll start the show.”
Lights out. The last words said in Chris Trew and Tami Nelson’s
introduction give the crowd at the Shadowbox Theatre about two
seconds to wipe the grin off their faces. Lights on.
In the next half hour, Trew and Nelson become an exhausted toddler and
his surrogate maternal figure and zoo tour guide; the boy’s runaway father and
a tender-but-willing airport employee and TSA agent; a patient wife and her
not-so-patient husband waiting for the zoo tour; and several other peripheral
characters in a totally improvised show. There was laughter throughout. At the
end, the audience explodes with applause.
It’s a show the couple has performed, always differently, since 2005, when
the New Orleans duo moved to Austin, Texas, after Hurricane Katrina. Over
the next few years, Nelson and Trew amassed a following, opened a comedy

theater, trained students — and now have returned to New
Orleans to do the same thing. The theater here, like the Austin
original, is called The New Movement (TNM), and it will open
as a full-time New Orleans improv school and comedy theater
in the Faubourg Marigny March 3.
“We’ve been talking a pretty big game for the past year.
‘We’re going to move to New Orleans and open a comedy
theater,’” Trew says before the show. Trew is all beard. His
thick-rimmed glasses sit above it. “All of a sudden it worked.
We have a building.”
“Chris, you’ve been talking a big game the past six years,”
Nelson says. Trew smiles.
Since the couple’s return to New Orleans last year, Trew
has produced several shows, videos, events and a fournight comedy festival, November’s Hell Yes Fest, which
had packed houses at all of its 10 shows. He continues
to campaign to be the elected owner of the New Orleans
Hornets, he’s hosted Air Sex competitions (think air guitar,
but with screwing), and he’s dropped in at events to perform
— then promote the hell out of the theater. It worked in Austin
and Houston and Dallas — TNM is now the nucleus for
comedy in all three cities. New Orleans is next.
PAGE 18

Gambit > bestofneworleans.com > february 28 > 2012

As a new comedy theater and school
opens in the Faubourg Marigny,
New Orleans seems on the cusp of
a comedy renaissance.

17

PAGE 17

the new
school
All events are at The New Movement (1919
Burgundy St.; www.thenewmovement.com).
Visit the website for more information and a
schedule of upcoming classes.

Comedy never took root in New Orleans the way it did in “the big three”:
New York, Chicago and Los Angeles, cities where theaters like Upright
Citizens Brigade (UCB), The Second City, The Groundlings and iO Improv
have enormous followings and sold-out nightly events. Many of their
graduates and performers have gone on to Saturday Night Live, the holy
grail for many comics.
Meanwhile, New Orleans has had open-mic shows with middling to
little followings, scattered improv, stand-up and sketch performances, and
the occasional touring comedian stuck with a shitty audience. Michael Ian
Black’s 2006 appearance at the House of Blues was so awful he put it on
his album I Am a Wonderful Man; track 4 is titled “New Orleans”: “I know
they’ve been through a tragedy in New Orleans. I’m aware of that,” Black
says. “But victims can be f—ing assholes.”
“New Orleans doesn’t strike me as a comedy
town,” says Black, who was in the city
last week promoting HGTV’s House
Hunters. Black, a member of definitive
sketch groups The State and Stella,
dunks a pyramid-shaped teabag
into a mug. “I guess because it’s so
focused on music. You don’t really
hear much about comedy in New
Orleans. Comedy audiences (here),
in my recollection, are more like music
audiences. They’re rowdy, yelling
at you.”
He is, of course, referencing his 2006
show. But he doesn’t hold it against New
Orleans, which he says is not an L.A. or a
New York — and he says it should not aspire
to be.
“The goal should be to create its own
homegrown comedy scene the way cities
develop their own music scenes,” Black
says. “Austin certainly has a great comedy

Fighting Spirit, 9 p.m.

scene. Most cities do. And it becomes self-regenerating. People go
through the system, they move through the system, and if they have the
ambition to do it professionally for their lives, they’ll leave. Then people
will come in, and it sustains itself.”
Indeed, in years past, New Orleans comedians have moved
elsewhere — New York, Chicago, Los Angeles — to find an audience.
New Orleans native Sean Patton moved to New York in 2006. He
recently appeared in the stand-up comic spotlight on both Late Night
with Jimmy Fallon and Conan, and just finished filming a pilot with
Marc Maron. Patton cut his teeth at New Orleans open-mic nights
with stand-up comics Seth Cockfield (who moved to Austin) and Neal
Stastny (who moved to New York). Before that, they hosted a popular
monthly Comedy Invasion show at Carrollton Station and packed
former Warehouse District coffee house True Brew for its weekly
open mic.
“Our first few years, those were our rock star nights,” Patton says
on the phone from New York, just before a show
at Upright Citizens Brigade with comedians
Thomas Lennon and Todd Glass. “We
promoted, we packed the place. We
were so new to it, but good at it. …
There were maybe 25 or 30 comics
(in New Orleans), and maybe 10 of
us were good, because we cared.
The rest did it as a hobby.”
Patton also performed with the
local improv group God’s Been
Drinking, which performed with
Nelson and Trew’s early improv
group ColdTowne. But Patton says
he had to leave New Orleans to
advance his career.
“I wanted more. I knew there had to
be more out there,” he says. “Things
were good, but I had a feeling, if I wanted
PAGE 20

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to really do this, I had to put myself to the test. There’s got to be
more to this.”
Another local improv group, Stupid Time Machine, featuring
Derek Dupuy, C.J. Hunt and Mike Spara, formed in 2009. “The
scene was really patchwork at the time,” says Dupuy, who is at
The Den at The Howlin’ Wolf. The group sits in the bare-walled
space after one of its weekly Tuesday night improv shows at the
club. “It’s grown so much — (there were) a handful of stand-ups
who I would say were good, but you didn’t have many stand-up
shows going on,” Dupuy says. “At the time, stand-up people
didn’t like the improvisers, improvisers didn’t necessarily do
stand-up, and nobody was doing sketch.”

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Stand-up comics Scotland Green and Cassidy Henehan host
Carrollton Station’s Wednesday open-mic night. Hosts Bill
Dykes and Dane Faucheux used to preside over it at Lucy’s
Retired Surfers Bar and Grill until 2009. It was at True Brew
before that. Henehan first stepped up to the mic in 2002 — he
moved to New York with Patton and returned to New Orleans
in 2010.
Henehan and Green have been on the homegrown beat
together since 2009, when they started a weekly comedy
showcase at Lost Love Lounge — a low-fi, well-curated
performance focused on quality, Henehan says, not a “glossy
flyer.” The duo’s favorite words — quality and consistency — are
essential, he says. Zach Galifianakis dropped in Carrollton
Station recently to run 10 minutes of new material, but it wasn’t
a fluke.
“It might seem like, ‘Oh, they got lucky, Scot’s show got this
little boost from the guy being there,’ but the reason the guy was
there was because we’re always here Wednesdays,” Henehan
says. “Our name is on the line.”
Besides performing stand-up, Faucheux also joined Stupid
Time Machine’s sketch group after watching its former regular
gig at La Nuit Comedy Theater on Freret Street. Many standups and groups — Trew, Patton, Stupid Time Machine — left
that theater to perform elsewhere. Faucheux now performs on
all sides of the aisles — at festivals, as a headliner, on the road
in hostile venues with bitter road comics, in local casinos, with
TNM’s roster, and as a host for TNM’s Megaphone Open Mic, a
twice-monthly show inside a shotgun house.
“I love the way I get to do it, kind of on my own terms,” he
says. “I’ve always wanted New Orleans to become a comedy
city, and I think it’s on its way, as
opposed to a place where
people can start out and
move away. … In the
last six years, Austin
has blown up, and its
comedy scene has
become huge, kind
of an underground
movement. Now New
Orleans is the next city to
do that.”
The following week,
Green and Henehan drink
from frosted schooner
glasses inside Carrollton
Station while the open
mic’s signup sheet fills with
returning comics and some
first-timers.
“From when I started
in 2006, it’s all been

Antiques & Interiors

wholesale to the public.
setting the groundwork for this to be a better comedy town
than it was,” Green says. “As soon as (Trew) got back, he was
just like, working. Doing it. Booking.”
Trew wants to keep comics here and prove that moving to
the “big three” doesn’t, and shouldn’t, have to be a necessity.
“If someone from the New Orleans comedy scene leaves,
part of me feels like I didn’t do my job,” he says. “I feel like our
responsibility is to build a badass thing here.”
TNM’s new home is the first floor of an art deco building
at 1919 Burgundy St. Inside, Trew instructs his “level five”
charges in one of their last classes before graduation,
which is just a few weeks away.
A
toilet flush upstairs resonates in
the theater space and everyone
giggles — something to fix
before the doors open the
following month. The six
students went through all
levels of TNM’s eight-week
classes, beginning at “level
one” last year. By the time the
theater opens, the students
will be the first alumni of
TNM’s New Orleans theater.
During his own school days,
Trew produced a sketch show
PAGE 23

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The groundwork from die-hard local comics and TNM’s rapid pace
and timing mesh nicely with the city’s entertainment “comeback” — not
only are touring music acts filling up concert calendars, touring standup comics are stepping on stages where formerly comedians were
absent. Paul F. Tompkins and Louis C.K. filled venues in 2010 and
2011, respectively, while bigger stages accommodated blockbuster
headline monsters like Chris Tucker and Sinbad. More recently, Leon
Blanda, who hosts a showcase at House of Blues on Thursdays, put
his flyer in the hands of SNL alum Darrell Hammond, who now makes
regular appearances at the show — which is free.
Stupid Time Machine sold out recent appearances at Chicago’s
and San Francisco’s Sketch Fests and was featured on the website
FunnyOrDie.com. And at home, La Nuit Comedy Theater continues
to host weekly performances, from improv groups to stand-up — Neil
Hamburger recently appeared there, and the theater hosted dozens
of others at a February comedy festival. TNM produced Hell Yes Fest,
which drew national comic performers and exposed local comedians
to larger audiences. TNM students already are producing new shows,
like A Handsome, featuring TNM students Cyrus Cooper, Drew Platt
and Addy Najera (who all perform stand-up, too).
“It’s got a way more thriving scene than anything we had back then,”
Patton says. “There’s more comics, they’re funnier comics, and they’re
younger, too.”
Standing outside Carrollton Station, Faucheux points to its door.
“This has been a staple for stand-ups in this city,” he says. “It’s
ridiculous that an open-mic [night] even has an audience. Open mics
around the country generally do not. … I haven’t seen that since I
started comedy. It has a sense of community really backing it.”
That C-Word — not comedy, and not the other four-letter one, but
“community” — is TNM’s most-used word. Nelson and Trew use it at
least a dozen times in 30 minutes. Not only are they actively defying
the conventions of 30-year-old improv doctrines, they’re rejecting the
sausage-factory, assembly-line “graduations” of its students. Nelson
and Trew begin most shows by asking the audience to “sound like a
million people” for whoever’s next, whether it’s the guest headliner or a
level one class with its first graduation recital. Everyone at every show
is invited to the after-party.
“This is a community about people who give a shit about doing
something important, even if it’s just in their personal circumference,”
Nelson says. “They want to do something
that’s important. A lot of that
translates into how to behave in the
world, a lot of it will translate into
how you behave yourself.”
“My dream scenario is not
to be Louis C.K. or Will Ferrell
or someone famous on SNL
right now,” Trew says. “Bestcase scenario for me is we help
hundreds of people fulfill their
comedy dreams, that we have a
really strong following in the cities
we give the most shit about, I get to
sit in the lower bowl for the Hornets
games all the time, and we get to
eat out whenever we want.
“We’re not obsessed with
‘What’s the next thing that has
to get out of here to be in
movies?’ We can do all
that here.”

Gambit > bestofneworleans.com > february 28 > 2012

at LSU on Tiger TV and formed the online sketch group studio8 (named
after his dorm room). He met Nelson in New Orleans after graduation. Later
he went to Chicago to study at iO Improv and Second City and formed the
improv group ColdTowne in New Orleans, which turned into ColdTowne in
Austin when the group moved there in the wake of Katrina. When the group
split, Nelson and Trew set off to open their own theater.
“The thing Chris and I wanted to do and eventually did do, our vision
never strayed, we wanted to teach a unique form of improv,” Nelson says.
“Everyone else in Austin and elsewhere was teaching a watered-down
version of what they learned at (iO Improv), UCB or Second City or
whatever, and borrowing directly from syllabi they learned in Chicago, L.A.
or New York. So when we opened The New Movement, we sat down like,
‘What do we like about improv, what do we like about how we do improv,
what do we like about how we teach improv, and let’s try and articulate that
in a syllabus.’ And we came up with a really good syllabus, and we’re super
proud of it. We know, because we’ve seen the results of it. … Convincing
everyone in Austin what we were doing was unique, it did have a specific
voice, it will yield a different kind of product — that was challenging.”
It worked. The Austin theater took off. While Nelson and Trew groomed
their students to take over TNM theaters elsewhere in Texas, they tapped
Stupid Time Machine to prepare New Orleans for TNM’s arrival. Along
with Grace Blakeman, who also performs with Stupid Time Machine and
sketch group Personality Plus, the group members now are
TNM teachers.
“We’ve all been like, ‘Should we go to Chicago?,’” Blakeman says.
“When Chris and Tami had this idea, we thought, well, we can make what
they have down here.”
Blakeman says TNM can change that metric of success: instead of
going to the jungle elsewhere, comics can “have fun and be really good.”
“Let’s make this the type of theater and scene that makes us not want
to go to Chicago, because there’s something so incredible happening
here,” Hunt says. “If we can make that, we’re the ones starting this thing,
we’re the ones who wanted it in the first place — where else would we go
from this?”
The theater already has more than a dozen graduates from its New
Orleans camp, and more than 100 total from its Texas schools. Its
opening month schedule features four performances from stand-ups
Sean Patton and Kyle Kinane and almost nightly performances from its
improv teams. Its alumni are touring the country, and TNM now has more
locations than its “rival” theaters; TNM isn’t
competing against other venues in New
Orleans, but other cities in the U.S.,
to attract the next crop of up-andcoming comic performers — a first
for a city without a national comedy
reputation.
“We have a chance to build a
legacy in a city of such a badass
section of America that we get
to show people, ‘Come to New
Orleans, it’s a place to celebrate,’”
says Stupid Time Machine’s Spara.
“The conversations happen multiple
times with people in established
comedy scenes in the other big
three, where it’s like, ‘God, I really
like New Orleans, and you guys are
really doing something. There’s
a scene now.’ I think you’re
going to see that gaining
momentum big time.”

ail, loyal subjects!
It doesn’t take much more than the cadence of a marching band, paper flowers bouncing on floats
rumbling down St. Charles Avenue or the flicker of flambeaux to get Rex Duke™ in the purple, green
and gold spirit.
The krewes presenting parades in 2012 also were in spirited form and offered truly worthy spectacles. The
Krewe of Endymion braved daunting weather forecasts and rolled on a rainy night. The final Sunday featured a
rare six parades rolling down St. Charles Avenue. The women of the Krewe of Nyx had a grand Carnival debut.
Krewes celebrated Louisiana history and culture on the state’s bicentennial. Others looked to the stars and the
signs of the zodiac. And Rex, my namesake, treated viewers to the wonderful exploration of the native peoples
of the Americas — and its new Butterfly King signature float took wing.
We are indeed fortunate to have among us krewe members who generously throw their time and effort into
providing such wonderful annual rites. So, without further ado, Rex Duke™ herewith offers his humble salute to
their grace and dedication — my annual reviews of the highlights of Carnival.
Below are the highest scoring parades. To see all reviews, visit www.bestofneworleans.com.

TM

RATINGS KEY

EXCELLENT
SETS A NEW CARNIVAL STANDARD

TOP PARADES
BEST OVERALL PARADE REX
BEST DAY PARADE THOTH
BEST NIGHT PARADE HERMES
BEST SUBURBAN PARADE CAESAR

REX
The original theme “Lore of the Ancient Americas” lent
itself beautifully to vivid color schemes and flora- and
fauna-inspired motifs for Rex’s floats. Brilliant color and
sculpted figures brought to life the Aztec serpent god
Quetzalcoatl and goddess Coatlicue, Hiawatha traveling
by canoe and the Native American figure of the coyote
as a trickster. On top of that, the organization debuted its
new signature float, The Butterfly King, which featured
animated wings fluttering for admiring crowds. The new
float and creative theme seemed to inject a lively energy
into this old-line krewe: masked riders danced aboard
their floats and lavished viewers with doubloons, long
strands of gold beads, pillows in the shape of the Rex
crown float and a rare, coveted throw, an enamel Butterfly King pin. Monroe’s Wossman High School Marching
Band delivered a dynamic performance. Other crowdpleasers included the United States Army band and the
Tulane University Marching Band.

HERMES
Hermes dipped into Persian literature in a parade
illustrating the Rubaiyat — showing how a traditional
literary parade theme can be both elegant and vibrant.
The procession of floats was marked by brilliant color,
wonderfully detailed and expressive prop figures and
an abundance of bouncing paper ornaments, including

flowers, snowflakes, grapes and more. The figures, including the pudgy naked reveler on “We That Now Make
Merry,” the winged woman on “Idols I Have Loved” and
the camels and palms on the Caravan float showcased
exemplary artwork. The parade also was full throughout
with mounted officers, flambeaux and marching bands,
including local favorites such as St. Augustine, Xavier
Prep, L.B. Landry, McDonogh 35 and several out-ofstate bands. Overall, it was an excellent and exotic affair.

LE KREWE D’ETAT
Le Krewe d’Etat smartly turned to local favorites. The
floats used popular New Orleans songs to turn a phrase
on local and national politics. Great floats included “Big
Chief” (featuring a killer likeness of New Orleans Police
Chief Ronal Serpas wearing a Native American headdress lined with money instead of feathers), “The Girl
Can’t Help It” (featuring Kim Kardashian and her 72-day
marriage — and a lament from Reggie Bush), and “Sea
Cruise” (featuring the yachting tech scandal crowd of
Greg Meffert, Mark St. Pierre et al.). Some float ideas
didn’t pan out as particularly funny or pointed, such as
one lamenting gridlock in Washington, D.C. The krewe’s
signature Dancin’ Dawlins squad featured men attired
as the One Percenters, all in tuxedos and top hats. The
Housewives of New Orleans, as a complementary female marching group, were an amusing addition. Throws
included plenty of light-up items, such as gel gargoyles
and head boppers with d’État’s signature skull. Good
performances were turned in by marching bands from
Central Lafourche and King College Prep of Chicago.

MUSES
Muses poked fun at their own indulgences and spread
the satire around in a theme that combined shopping
with local and national topics. Floats featuring “Bourbon
Outfitters” and “Wombs to Go” were good examples
of Muses’ wit. “J. Crude” featured an oil-mucked oyster
and referenced the BP oil disaster. “Banana Republicans” feted the less-than-inspiring GOP primary field. A
separate “Sayless” float featured Donald Trump with his
mouth taped shut. The krewe also accessorized smartly.
Throws featured blingy gold beads and credit card medallions. Many floats featured riders in lighted wigs and
masks. And the procession was full of special marching

ORPHEUS
Orpheus’ parade was a star-studded affair with guests
Bret Michaels and Cyndi Lauper, both of whom
performed at the Orpheuscapade afterward. Other
celebrities in the parade included Harry Connick Jr.,
Hilary Swank and Mariska Hargitay. Orpheus’ theme
of “Nonsense and Tomfoolery” offered a slew of silly
named poems, places and characters, including “Jabberwocky” (on a beautiful float early in the procession),
“In the Land of Rumplydoodle” and “In the Land of
Bumbly Boo.” After a while, however, it became a bit too
much gobbledygook matched by single props on floats.
Combining flashing lights and fiber optics with old-line
Carnival float decorations such as paper flowers is one
of the things Orpheus does best, but Rex Duke wonders
why this parade only had flowers. Some floats relied on
a single prop and nothing else but big red and yellow
flowers, which is very pretty, but doesn’t play out the
theme very thoroughly. Several floats had water themes
but flowers instead of waves or something more nautical.
Earlier in the evening, Proteus incorporated both motifs.
Orpheus riders wore colorful costumes and threw very
generously. The procession included nearly 20 marching
bands. Overall, a very fine parade.

PROTEUS
Proteus made a big splash with its appropriately nautical
“Mythologica Aquatica” theme. Floats depicted gods,
creatures and heroes. Stunning examples included “Aegir,” the Norse sea giant, whose float featured a 3-D Viking
ship with mast, sails and shields and very detailed painting
and waves in the form of bobbing paper ornaments.
The Kraken float featured an octopus attacking a ship
with shipwreck detritus and detail conveying the chaos
throughout the float. Other impressive figures included
Venus and Chinese sea dragons. Many of Proteus’ old
floats were lavishly adorned with paper flowers, waves
and elements that jumped off float surfaces. However,
some were not as well-adorned, and it gave a slight air
of inconsistency, though in fairness, the good ones were
stellar and the others still featured good work. Riders
threw Naga beads, plush tridents and seahorses — and

Gambit > bestofneworleans.com > february 28 > 2012

BEST SUPERKREWE REX

VERY GOOD
TO OUTSTANDING

25

rex duke 2012
tm

were generous. A fine lineup of bands
included Warren Easton, Roots of
Music, George Washington Carver and
Sophie B. Wright.

THOTH
Thoth showed street cred with a
parade celebrating local roads, but
what set its effort apart from common
Carnival nostalgia for better-known
streets was its attention to detail.
Far-flung local landmarks depicted on
floats included Dong Phuong bakery
and NASA in eastern New Orleans and
Lincoln Beach on Hayne Boulevard.
The Downman Road float featured
Visions Men’s Club. Costumes were
good, and safari outfits were a nice
choice for the float with the Audubon
Zoo. Notable band performances
included Chalmette High School
leading the procession for the 25th
year, Tulane University’s band playing
“Iko Iko” and KIPP Renaissance High
School’s band. Riders kept themselves
and the crowd in good spirits as delays
sometimes occurred on a busy Carnival Sunday, which saw six parades on
St. Charles Avenue.

ALLA

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Alla presented its “Astrological Odyssey,” featuring the signs of the zodiac.
Floats with good props included the
Cancer float’s crab, the fish on Pisces
and others marking Sagittarius, Aries
and Gemini. The krewe also had a
galaxy of invited guests. Cast members of Swamp People were among
the visiting stars. Alla doesn’t just pride
itself on its consistently stellar lineup
of roughly 20 high school marching
bands; it also features a slew of extra
units, including guests riding convertibles as well as numerous police
and fire department vehicles. The
krewe threw generously, especially
long beads and footballs. The colorful
collars on the maids are always bright
and well-made. And did I mention the
bands? There were too many to name
them all, but some of the standouts
came from St. Augustine, O. Perry
Walker, West Jefferson High School,
L.B. Landry, Helen Cox and Edna Karr.

BACCHUS
Like several krewes, Bacchus celebrated the Louisiana bicentennial. But even
with Will Ferrell riding as Bacchus XLIV,
the parade was no joke. Floats feted
the Saints, Hornets, LSU, Preservation
Hall, the Audubon Zoo and tourism, and
individual float costumes included hats
or headdresses that often matched the
float titles. There was an abundance of
bands and throws, the latter including
popular pelican plushies and blinking
grape clusters.

CAESAR
Caesar relied on festivals from around
the world to warm up the crowds on
a cold night. Far-flung celebrations
included Oktoberfest, Carnival in Rio
de Janeiro, Kauai’s Polynesian festival

and Mexico’s Day of the Dead. Riders
on the Russian Winterfest were fortunate to have parkalike costumes on this
chilly evening. The royals had massive
neon-lit collars. Throws were heavy and
included leopard-print plush spears.
Brother Martin’s band treated the
crowd to “America the Beautiful” and
East Jefferson High’s band lapsed into
the theme from ESPN’s SportsCenter. Elmo and Cookie Monster were
popular with kids, and some older kids
enjoyed the costumed Star Wars group
from the 501st Legion.

CHAOS
The Knights of Chaos turned its edgy
satire on gender issues — including
the kind of problems women have
with men — in “Chaos Skirts the Issues.” Leading the parade was “Thank
Heaven For Little Girls,” lampooning
former governor and convicted felon
Edwin Edwards’ young bride. A toilet
seat left up adorned a float noting Mary
Landrieu’s re-election campaign to
hold on to her Senate seat. Men who
received the krewe’s attention included
radio talk show host Garland Robinette
on the float “Lip Schtick.” The float
decorations and rider costumes were
as sharp as the krewe’s wit. The East
St. John High School marching band
looked very good. Float-specific cups
were scarce but treasured.

ENDYMION
Endymion riders answered the call
when the krewe braved a very rainy day
to parade through Mid-City. Perhaps
it was fittingly titled “Happily Ever
After,” as this year’s theme drew on
children’s stories and folk tales, many
of which dealt with the need to overcome obstacles. Some of the more
recognizable figures included Shrek,
the frog prince and Cinderella, and
some of the stunning figures included
a massive demon offering piles of
gold. As always, krewe members threw
very generously — everything from
stuffed footballs to long beads to LED
necklaces. The Grambling University
band stood out and was a real crowdpleaser. One lowlight: The king and
queen floats were vacant, at least for
part of the trip. That’s not a good start
to a parade, but the rest of the krewe is
to be commended for making the best
of a very wet evening.

MID-CITY
Mid-City’s “Apocalypso: Party at the
End of the World” foiled any notion
that the end times won’t be joyous. The
dance theme played out with cultural
highlights from around the world, and
notable floats featured Chinese dragons, Russian ballet, Japanese kabuki,
a Mayan pyramid and a snake dance.
The parade featured powerhouse performances from St. Augustine, Pierre
A. Capdau Charter School (which
played Adele’s “Rolling in the Deep”)
and North Carolina’s Dudley High
School. The potato chip bag throws
were popular, as always.

MORPHEUS
Celebrating “Louisiana Treasures” is
something several krewes did this year,
but Morpheus seems to have plenty
of its own to celebrate. The krewe is
growing, and its 20 floats were full of
riders. There were nice costuming
touches such as the chefs’ hats on
riders on the float honoring Louisiana
chefs. Other floats feted the Saints
and LSU Tigers. Also commendable
was parading with 15 school marching
bands on a busy Carnival night. That
alone makes it worth staying out for
the third parade of the evening. Some
of the highlights included O. Perry
Walker, West Jefferson, Archbishop
Shaw and a trio of bands from Memphis. The procession also included a
couple of Mummers groups. Throwing
was heavy and this krewe is on the rise.

NYX

ZULU
A very elastic theme, “From Zulu With
Love,” was perhaps the only way to label the massive parade of more than 50
floats and 20-plus bands. On the tails
of the Southern University Marching
Band, King Zulu was resplendent in a
white feather headdress, and the cadre
of walking Soulful Warriors generously
handed out feathered masks to the
crowd. Some floats had odd titles, such
as “These beer goggles ain’t working!” and aspirations such as “Black
and Gold for the Super Bowl at home
in the Dome!” Commendably, many
riders donned masks and sequined,
feathered headdresses. In addition to
blackface, some wore masks atop their
heads, giving attendees an interesting
view when riders ducked forward to
grab throws. St. Augustine’s Marching
100 sounded great, as always. The
lack of a unifying theme is a letdown,
but this krewe overcompensates with
heavy throwing and an impressive array
of bands.

BABYLON

The Knights of Babylon feted a current
empire with its “Queen’s Diamond

CARROLLTON
The Krewe of Carrollton celebrated
Louisiana with floats depicting everything from riverboats, seafood boils and
the outdoors to breweries (Dixie Beer
was mentioned). Some of the floats had
their own highs and lows. For example,
the outdoors float had a flamingo on it,
but the riders looked good in pelican
masks. Riders on the Louis XV float
wore amusing period costumes, but the
men seemed to be in Napoleon garb.
One float offered state flags, which
nicely suited the theme. Other riders
were generous with stuffed animals and
beads. The solid contingent of marching bands included St. Mary’s Academy
and the Theophile J. Elie High School
band, which was joined by Wendell
Pierce and Phyllis Montana-LeBlanc
from HBO’s Treme.

DRUIDS
The ever secretive and inscrutable
Druids looked like it was offering up
a satirical parade when its “Druid’s
Circus” theme started with a “Ringmaster” float that appeared to feature a
likeness of Mayor Mitch Landrieu, but
the rest of the floats simply featured
circus performers: clowns, sword
swallowers, trapeze girls and a human
cannonball. The renaissance fair
troupe is a suitable group to march
with the Druids, and others included
the Muff-A-Lottas and Gris Gris Strut.
Marching bands represented MillerMcCoy, Chalmette, Helen Cox and
John Ehret high schools.

EXCALIBUR
Excalibur spent a Knight in China, with
floats marking the animal signs in the
Chinese zodiac. Standout floats included the Year of the Pig, Year of the Goat
and Year of the Tiger, each of which
had good props and were painted
throughout with Asian images. Hats and
costumes also matched the theme. The
bright, feathered collars on the captain,
royals and maids were tall and wide
like a peacock’s feathers and looked
splendid. The procession had only six
marching bands, however, and Jefferson Carnival is trying to get krewes to
field more than that. Overall, this was a
solid parade with a fresh look.

IRIS
In a self-referential theme, Iris saluted
“The Messenger of the Gods.” Floats
depicted ancient alphabets, the game
Scrabble and gossip, which featured

Nyx had a grand debut on St. Charles
Avenue. Its theme twisted reality TV
shows, a concept that’s been popular
lately in Carnival. Some of the float
ideas employed clever turns of phrase,
like “Wrought Iron Chef” and “Bourbon
Street’s Got Talent,” which featured
a Chris Owens figure. Some were
corny, like “Catching Up With the Street
Kardashin’,” which had a streetcar, and
“Carnival’s Craziest Catch” with a nautical figure. Others didn’t make much
sense, such as “504 Jersey Shore,”
featuring a New Orleans Saint figure.
The riders were clearly enthusiastic
and the costumes were good. While
the front of the parade was loaded with
powerhouse marching bands from St.
Augustine, O. Perry Walker and Warren Easton, there were too few bands
farther back. Overall, it was a solid first
effort for the new krewe.

Jubilee” theme. Great Britain and its
literary classics have been featured
often in Carnival parades, and the key
to making it work is really embracing
the subject. The details here included
massive daffodils on “Wordsworth’s
Daffodils,” riders in powdered wigs on
the “Queen’s Diamond Jubilee” float,
and the odd but amusing mix of berets
and tuxedos on the riders of “StratfordUpon-Avon.” Floats featured Shakespeare, Wales, Robin Hood and other
British figures.

Download our brochure
and registration form at
www.castletree.net
St. George’s Episcopal School

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tm

a grapevine snaking around the design.
Costumes matched individual float ideas,
so riders on the “Heavenly Messengers”
float dressed as angels. The rain-delay
move to Sunday deprived the parade of
bands, but the krewe created a good
theme and executed it well.

ing the King riding as Andrew Jackson in
Jackson Square) — featured jumpsuits,
shades and pompadours. Marching bands came from Oakhaven High
School in Memphis and local Shack
Brown Charter School. Throws included
toilet paper and little plastic toilets.

KING ARTHUR

ZEUS

The Knights of King Arthur celebrated
both the Louisiana bicentennial and
the krewe’s 35th anniversary. Impressive floats included “Voodoo,” featuring
a crypt keeper, and a big open-jawed
alligator on “Cajun Influences.” The only
costumes that broke the mold were the
black-and-gold on the riders on the New
Orleans Saints float, but the captain
and royalty looked fine in white feathers. Standout marching bands came
from McMain and West Feliciana High
School. Members generously tossed
plush animals, footballs and beads to
the crowd.

Reminders of past years’ themes filled
Zeus’ 55th anniversary parade. Floats
harkened back to 1961’s “A Child Dreams
of Fantasy,” 1958’s “The Realm of Mother
Nature” and 1981’s “Those Were the
Days” float, the latter of which had a brass
band aboard. Newer to the procession
were grand marshals Jarrett Lee and TBob Hebert from LSU’s 2011 SEC championship football team. The procession’s
traditional elements included mounted
riders and members in chariots. Riders
threw the krewe’s signature drachmas
(Greek-inspired doubloons), and there
were vuvuzela-like horns. The procession
was light on bands, but the Marine Corps
band and the Archbishop Rummel High
band played well.

OKEANOS
“Gone But Not Forgotten” was Okeanos’
title for a parade taking up a theme common at Carnival in recent years: nostalgia
and things the city has lost. At the front of
the parade, Vince Vance rode on a float
bearing his likeness, which was entertaining. Local icons feted on floats included
the Bali Hai restaurant, Pontchartrain
Beach and McKenzie’s bakery. Riders on
the K&B Drugs float wore plush purple
crowns, and Bali Hai riders wore tropical
attire. The Archbishop Rummel High
School marching band infused the parade
with its energetic presence.

PYGMALION
The Krewe of Pygmalion introduced
the odd prehistoric Pygmammoth on a
new signature float. The creature has
fiber optic eyes and carries a handful of
riders. The theme of board games wasn’t
stunning, but it was carried out well with
suitable props and decorations on the
floats. Pygmalion only had seven marching bands, but the lineup was good and
the start of the parade featured St. Augustine, Sophie B. Wright and George
Washington Carver in rapid succession,
which got the parade off to a hot start on
a very cold night. Pygmammoth throws
were a nice bonus.

N.O.M.T.O.C.
New Orleans’ Most Talked Of Club
(N.O.M.T.O.C.) rolled Uptown and not
in Algiers after heavy rain forced it to
reschedule. The change deprived the
parade of some bands, but L.B. Landry
got the crowd excited during the early
Sunday procession. The theme combined Zodiac and monster floats, which
was entertaining if not totally in sync. Perhaps more confusing was a football team
riding on the Mummy float. The riders
made the best of the changes and threw
heavily — particularly stuffed toys.

PONTCHARTRAIN
Fans of local festivals were treated
to a fun parade by the Krewe of Pontchartrain. The float titles turned each
festival into a guessing game, and events
celebrated ranged from the Alligator
Festival to Voodoo Festival, although
the float was decorated with daisies,
which was an odd choice. Riders wore
costumes that matched float themes.
The small contingent of marching bands
included Miller-McCoy Academy and St.
Mary’s Academy.

TUCKS

SPARTA

Tucks was rescheduled because of
weather problems, and that seemed to
leave the krewe short of bands and riders. The krewe’s theme of “Tucks Gets
Culture” featured the group’s signature
raunchy wit and let-it-all-hang-out personality. It’s known for toilet humor, and
one of the funniest floats was “Michael
Angelo’s David Vitter,” featuring the
marble statue of David wearing a diaper
(and a painted vignette with Vitter saying,
“The real masterpiece is in my diaper.”)
One float reimagined Cubism as a case
of beer goggling. The “Yat Supper” was
the Last Supper turned into a crawfish
boil. The riders on “The Velvis” float —
celebrating velvet Elvis canvases (includ-

It’s admirable to see Sparta’s reverence
for tradition. The mule-drawn king’s float
looked great and the dink at the head
of the parade also is impressive. The
theme had fun with puns on animals it
associated with Mardi Gras. The rabbit
float was subtitled “Hoppy Mardi Gras,”
a float with a tiger was of course used as
a reference to LSU. The “Cochon” float
was subtitled “This Little Piggy Went
to Sparta.” The parade was good on
throws, but light on marching bands, although O. Perry Walker and Baker High
School sounded great.
Visit www.bestofneworleans.com to
read all parade reviews.

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Gambit > bestofneworleans.com > february 28 > 2012

2012
Summer Experience

City Park (New Orleans)

29

WHAT’S

in store

Party
T

By Alex Pence

SHAMROCKIN’
per-person
With games
prices for open
like pool, Skeebar parties that
Ball, air hockey
include free
pool, ping pong and ping-pong,
and darts. Miley Shamrock Bar and
Grill is “like Chuck
Cyrus rented
the entire venue E. Cheese for
adults,” manager
for a wrap
Ed Meyer says.
party, and local
businesses
PHOtO By
often rent out
CHERyl GERBER
part of the bar
for company
get-togethers.
“All you need is 10 or 15 people, and you
can get unlimited draft beer, white and
red wine, sodas and juice for three hours
for $15 per person,” Meyer says. “Up that
price to $19 and that includes bar-brand
mixed drinks and domestic beer, as well.”
The bar hosts a daily happy hour
from 3-6 p.m., when games are $2,
Pabst Blue Ribbon pints are $1.50,
and imported beers are $3. There are
more than 30 draft beers on tap and
an on-site Breathalyzer machine. “Our
customers usually take a cab, so more
often than not the Breathalyzer machine
is used in jest,” Meyer says. The bar
draws a large college crowd, as well as
a loyal following among the older set.
“We have a lot of regular customers
who work in the Quarter and come here
to kick back and relax,” Meyer says.
“There’s something here for absolutely
everyone.”

The yOuNG lEAdERSHIP COuNCIl
hosts its monthly general membership mixer
from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 28
at tOMMy’S WINE BAR (746 Tchoupitoulas St., 581-1103; www.tommysneworleans.
com). The happy hour menu includes $5
small plates, wine and a signature cocktail.

The 57tH ANNuAl NEW ORlEANS
HOME ANd GARdEN SHOW (www.neworleanshomeshows.com/homeandgardenshow)
is at the MERCEdES-BENz SuPERdOME
(Sugar Bowl Drive, 587-3663; www.superdome.com) Friday, March 2 through Sunday,
March 4 with $9 general admission, $5 military
admission and free admission for children
under age 12. There will be booths on hazard
mitigation, green building, home remodeling,
decorating and landscaping.

by Megan Braden-Perry

The lOuISIANA SPCA (LA/SPCA) and
local fashion designers join forces for
AlEGRIA (762-3307; www.la-spca.org/
alegria), a fashion show hosted by W NEW
ORlEANS (333 Poydras St., 525-9444;
www.wneworleans.com) at 3 p.m. Sunday,
March 4. All proceeds benefit the LA/SPCA.
Tickets start at $25 and table sponsorships start at $500. There will be specialty
cocktails, hors d’oeuvres and a silent auction,
and the event is hosted by Melanie Hebert of
WWL-TV and Rosa Flores of WDSU-TV.
tEd’S FROStOP (3100 Calhoun St., 8613615) hosts its Bringing it Back Celebration
at the diner from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday,
March 4. There will be free root beer and
performances by The Elvis Candlelight Vigil
Band, Bedlamville Triflers and Tricks Band.

Gambit > bestofneworleans.com > february 28 > 2012

he cavernous, 13,000-squarefoot space that makes up
Shamrock Bar and Grill (4133
S. Carrollton Ave., 301-0938; www.
shamrockparty.com) hosts a visual feast
of fun: pool tables are scattered between
two full bars; there’s a large dance
floor and accompanying stage, a mini
bowling alley, shuffleboard tables, darts
stations, Skee-Ball, ping-pong cages,
a boxing machine, foosball and airhockey tables, video poker machines,
virtual racing and golfing games, and
a four-player Pac-Man game. There’s
also a special lounge exclusively for
women, which is often used to host
bachelorette parties. “This place is
like Chuck E. Cheese for adults,” says
manager Ed Meyer.
Shamrock Bar and Grill is the result
of a grand vision that took owner Brian
Murphy more than a year to realize.
“Shamrock is now the biggest bar in
Mid-City,” Meyer says. Shamrock offers
live music on Fridays, a DJ on Saturdays
and karaoke on Sundays. It partners
with the American Pool Association to
hold the annual New Orleans Cup, and
there are foosball tournaments every
Tuesday. All LSU and New Orleans
Saints games are shown on Shamrock’s
100-square-foot screen, and the bar is
open every day, including holidays. “Our
business hours are from 3 p.m. until the
last person is standing,” Meyer says.
Shamrock also hosts events, offering

31

EAT
drink

+

FOrk + center
By IAN MCNUlTy
Email Ian McNulty at mcnulty@cox.net

putting everything on the table
WHAT
Cafe B

WHERE

2700 Metairie Road,
Metairie, 934-4700;
www.cafeb.com

WHEN

lunch Mon.-Fri., dinner
Mon.-Sat., brunch Sun.

RESERVATIONS
Accepted

HOW MUCH
Expensive

WHAT WORKS

Original twists on familiar
local flavors

WHAT DOESN’T

Dinner prices leap ahead
of the casual approach

Salad Slingers
in the CBd

Approach the First Bank and Trust
Tower on Poydras Street and its sleek
facade, brass detailing and classic
bronze sculptures suggest money. That’s
appropriate enough for a bank headquarters, but the ground floor of this CBD
skyscraper offers greens of another sort.
City Greens (909 Poydras St., 5242822; www.eatcitygreens.com), the newest salad slingers in the CBD, opened in
late January.
Once diners pass the security desk
and polished marble floors, they find
a cafe with a modern design. Step
up to the counter and servers quickly
whip together salads from a large and
impressively stocked bar of greens, fruits,
vegetables and other fixings.
“Traveling around, we saw lots of salad
shops turning up in other cities and felt
New Orleans was definitely limited in
healthier options, so this was a niche we
could fill in the market,” says Michael
Birtel, who started City Greens along
with business partner Ben Kazenmaier.
This is their first restaurant, but the
two took some time last year to test the
concept as a pop-up. They initially operated on Sundays inside Vizard’s (5015

here was a time when no one had to tell you when you were
visiting a neighborhood restaurant. The straightforward,
inexpensive menu made it clear, as did unassuming
ambience and the fact that all the neighbors were there too.
But thanks to concurrent trends of fine dining getting looser
and neighborhood spots growing more ambitious, it’s harder to
categorize some restaurants.
But here’s one reliable metric of the neighborhood restaurant:
How busy is the dining room on an ordinary Monday night or at
Wednesday lunch? In the case of Cafe B, things are kicking and
people have worked the place into their routines. Some credit
must go to the responsiveness of restaurateur Ralph Brennan’s
team, who wisely — and quickly — modified the initial concept to
keep the neighborhood coming back.
Cafe B opened last spring with a menu in line with the gastro
pub trend. Chicken pot pie was a signature dish, for instance,
and it was promoted heavily. But that approach has been toned
down in favor of more local flavors, especially seafood. It turns
out people were more interested in oysters fried in buttermilk and
whatever Gulf fish the kitchen wanted to saute than slabs of pork
belly, poached eggs on asparagus and similar fare from earlier
menus. Diners still can get a $15 burger here — and it is very good
— but the core DNA now is local contemporary Creole, made a bit

Questions?
Email winediva1@earthlink.net.

ColChagua Valley, Chile
$13-$18 Retail

more homey than a date-night destination restaurant.
Cafe B came about while Brennan was shopping for a space
to reopen Bacco, the Italian restaurant he closed last year. He
was looking Uptown, but when he discovered this space on
Metairie Road he shifted gears. The Bacco plans have been
shelved, and that restaurant’s former chef, Chris Montero, leads
the Cafe B kitchen.
Bacco’s best-selling dish, shrimp and lobster ravioli, made the
move to Cafe B too. It’s certainly elegant, though for that reason
it’s not really representative of the menu. The hanger steak is
very good, and the chicken pot pie is still available, but the best
bets are the paneed veal over fettuccine, shrimp beignets spiked
with tasso, lemon icebox pie, and grilled fish with balsamic
reduction, a profusion of floppy-capped wild mushrooms and a
charred Vidalia onion.
Service is on the ball, though from water choices to optional
crabmeat toppings, the upsell pitch always seems close at hand.
The renovation of the space has opened it up beautifully, with
soft colors, a lovely bar and enough room for a solo diner to
read the paper at one table while another group sings “Happy
Birthday.” To me, a place where people are doing both on any
given night of the week has a valid claim on the title of neighborhood restaurant.

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Gambit > bestofneworleans.com > february 28 > 2012

VISIT US FOR DETAILS

34

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324-4727

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Visit us to try what you won’t fifind anywhere else!
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FLEXIBILITY TO EXERCISE OUTSIDE OR INSIDE ON THE SAME MACHINE!
If you used to be a runner or would like to be
one, you owe it to yourself to try the ElliptiGo.

The Maison Dupuy Hotel is hosting its
sixth annual French Quarter Wine Festival, a nine-week series of wine dinners
held in conjunction with its restaurant, Le
Meritage (1001 Toulouse St., 586-8000;
www.lemeritagerestaurant.com).
Each of the 16 dinners features a reception and four-course meal with the winemaker or proprietor of the winery featured
that evening. Chef Michael Farrell offers
a special menu to pair with the vintners’
selections.
The event is modeled after the Boston
Wine Festival, where dinners are held in
a pair of waterfront restaurants including
Meritage, the forerunner and sibling to the
Quarter’s Le Meritage.
The French Quarter Wine Festival
begins Friday with a grand opening reception that features dozens of wines from
vineyards participating in this year’s series,
along with a buffet and performances by
the Rebirth Brass Band and Los PoBoy-Citos. The block-party style event
spreads from Burgundy Street to the hotel
courtyard. It begins at 7 p.m. Tickets are
$75.
The main festival programming starts the
following week with the Opus One winery

XaVIER LaUREnTInO
C h ef A n D o w n er , B A r C elo n A TA pA S

a

native of Barcelona, Xavier Laurentino had stints as a television actor and a
bodyguard before moving to New Orleans in 1986. He intended to stay for
one year, but in 1995 he was still here, working as a contractor and running
an auto shop. That year he also had his first job in a restaurant kitchen, cooking at
Lola’s Restaurant (3312 Esplanade Ave., 488-6946) after its owner, his friend and
fellow Spaniard Angel Miranda, was injured in a car wreck. In 2002 Laurentino
opened his own Spanish restaurant, Laurentino’s, in Metairie and later relocated the
business to the Riverbend, where it’s now called Barcelona Tapas (720 Dublin St.,
861-9696).
What do you think of the spread of
Spanish culinary ideas in America?
Laurentino: What I wish was that it happened 25 years ago, because a lot of
people have misconceptions. Some people still hear “Spanish food” and think
tacos and enchiladas. It’s unbelievable, but I still encounter that almost every
day. Someone will say “So this is Spanish food?” I say, “Yes.” They say, “So are
you from Peru or something?”
There are a number of items on your menu
called canoes, which are different combinations
of meat and cheese on small bread slices. Is this
a traditional tapas style?
L: In Spain there are different styles and names for what we think of here as
tapas. “Canoe” is just the name I’m using for what we call montaditos back
home. It’s the same thing as pinchos, which have toothpicks stuck in them,
holding what’s on top to the bread. These are basically tapas, but the big difference is a pincho or a montadito is a unitary thing, a little taste, whereas a tapa
will be a little bigger and can be shared.

fIVE TakEs
On REdfIsh
Bayona
430 Dauphine St., 525-4455
www.bayona.com
Sauteed redfish is served with
chanterelles and leek vinaigrette.

What do you miss the most from
Spanish gastronomy?
L: I would say the easiness, the casual approach to tapas. We have a saying:
“tapeo,” it means going out for tapas. You call your friends and say, “Do you
want to go have dinner or a tapeo?” When they say tapeo, you go around from
one place to another and someone gets the round at each place, and that’s
how you go — boom, boom, boom — like that, until you drop. —IAN MCNuLTY

dinner on March 6 and the Page Wine
Cellars dinner on March 7, and they continue each Tuesday and Wednesday. The
cost varies, but generally ranges between
$95 and $105 per person (the Opus One
dinner is $155). A closing reception on
April 27 will feature wines from the festival
and previews of the 2013 series. For tickets, dinner menus and more details, visit
www.frenchquarterwinefestival.com.

Co. (4400 Banks St., 482-2426; www.
crescentpieandsausage.com) has added
a new selection of entrees that channel
co-owner Bart Bell’s Cajun roots. A native
of the Bayou Teche town of Franklin, Bell
always has had a great jambalaya and
gumbo on the menu of his restaurant, but
now there are also entrees like catfish
courtboullion and a fricassee of hen with
potatoes and chicken sausage.
Chef Dominique Macquet’s new restaurant Tamarind by Dominique (936
St. Charles Ave., 962-0909) is beginning
lunch service Wednesday, March 1. The
restaurant, which opened last month inside the Hotel Modern, melds Vietnamese and French flavors, and its new lunch
menu follows suit. Dishes include duck
confit on rice noodle salad, and pork and
shrimp crepes with mustard greens. The
menu also features soup-and-sandwichstyle combinations of banh mi and pho.
Braised short ribs and sauteed shrimp
with garlic and kaffir lime are among the
banh mi fillings.
Tamarind will serve lunch Monday
through Saturday.

628 St. Charles Ave., 523-7600
www.mikesontheavenue.com
Smoked redfish is made into a
pate to spread on wafers.

Off

the

menu

“It’s become the ugg boots of food. It’s
a trend that’s long past its welcome.”
— Andrew Knowlton, restaurant editor of Bon Appetit, regarding the use of
eggs across restaurant menus.
Knowlton was quoted in a recent
new York post article on the menu
trend. Bon Appetit’s “dish of the year”
for 2009 was “anything with an egg
on top,” but now Knowlton says that
move has “become a crutch for some
chefs. … When they don’t know what to
do with a dish, they’ll — just to add that
certain extra gilding-the-lily lusciousness — put an egg on it.”

Gambit > bestofneworleans.com > february 28 > 2012

Magazine St., 895-2246), the uptown finedining restaurant where both had previously worked. Birtel says his former boss
there, chef/owner Kevin Vizard, “was
pretty instrumental in helping us figure out
a model for something we thought New
Orleans was missing.”
The Vizard’s pop-up arrangement
lasted until the summer. In the fall, City
Greens moved downtown to a spot inside
Tulane university School of Medicine
while construction continued at its permanent location.
“The seasons changed so our ingredients changed too, and we got to test our
menu with a downtown crowd,” Birtel says.
At its permanent Poydras Street location,
salads are the star attractions. Among the
options is one with arugula, apples, candied walnuts, goat cheese, bacon and red
wine vinaigrette. There’s a Caesar salad
with roasted garlic and a truffle-spiked
dressing, and a market salad features a
mix of kale, arugula, carrots, fennel, beets,
Brussels sprouts and radishes in orangesherry vinaigrette. City Greens will fold any
of them in a tortilla for a wrap, and the menu
includes a few other wraps, like a Thai
shrimp version made with mixed greens,
herbs and peanut dressing.
The menu changes seasonally, and
most of the lettuce served here is grown at
Kazenmaier’s hydroponic farm in Florida.
Other greens come from Covey Rise
Farms, a small grower in Tangipahoa
Parish. Meals are packed into serving
containers from Eco-Products, a Boulder,
Colo.-based supplier of “sustainable disposables” made from recycled or agricultural materials.
City Greens serves breakfast — light
items such as coffee, pastries and parfaits
— and lunch Monday through Friday from 7
a.m. to 2 p.m.

fIVE in

35

s
r
i
a
f
's

s
l
a
v
i
t
Fes
&

2
1
0
2 E
D
I
U
G

Fun

for all

Seasons
B Y M A R TA J E W S O N

Louisiana’s fairs and festivals offer a smorgasbord
of culture, food and music every month of the year.

Fairs & Festivals > bestofneworleans.com > february 28 > 2012

L

2

ouisiana offers myriad fairs
and festivals throughout
the year. Celebrating
music, food, heritage and history
can jazz up an afternoon or turn a
weekend into a vacation. There’s
new music to hear, new food
to taste, history to learn and a
lagniappe of local talents who
are happy to share their arts at
these special events. Here’s
our guide to help you plan your
year and enjoy the fun while
supporting fellow Louisianians.

The Pfister Sisters represent
the New Orleans swing era,
with their recreation of the
Boswell Sister’s arrangements.

15

happy hour

EAt

3-6PM every sunday

AMERICAN
FAT HEN GROCERY — 7457
St. Charles Ave., 266-2921;
www.fathengrill.com — Barbecue
is the specialty at chef Shane
Pritchett’s casual cafe with
an upscale deli menu. Order
barbecued pulled-pork, Texasstyle brisket or St. Louis ribs.
There also are burgers, entrees,
creative sides, and breakfast is
available all day. No reservations.
Breakfast, lunch and dinner daily.
Credit cards. $$

po-boys, Reuben sandwiches,
cheese sticks and fries with
cheese or gravy. Other options
include corned beef and cabbage, and fish and chips. No
reservations. Dinner and late
night daily. Credit cards. $

P

HO

COME TRY OUR BLACKBERRY JALAPENO SMOKED RIBS

you are where you eat

Out 2 Eat is an index of
Gambit contract advertisers.
Unless noted, addresses are
for New Orleans. Dollar signs
represent the average cost of
a dinner entree: $ — under $10;
$$ — $11 to $20; $$$ — $21
or more. To update information
in the Out 2 Eat listings, email
willc@gambitweekly.com, fax
483-3116 or call Will Coviello
at 483-3106. Deadline is 10
a.m. Monday.

CREOLE
ANTOINE’S RESTAURANT
— 713 St. Louis St., 581-4422;
www.antoines.com — The city’s
oldest restaurant offers a glimpse
of what 19th century French
Creole dining might have been
like, with a labyrinthine series of
dining rooms. Signature dishes
include oysters Rockefeller,
crawfish Cardinal and baked

com — The roast beef po-boy
dripping with garlicky gravy is the
highlight of a menu transplanted
from the former Parasol’s to
this Uptown bar. Other options
include fried seafood and bar
noshing items. No reservations.
Lunch and dinner daily. Cash
only. $

41

MUSIC 45
FILM 49

AE
+

A R T 52
S TAG E 57

what to know before you go

EVENTS 59

New
Interventions
The Interrupters examines efforts
to stop violence.
By Deanna Isaacs

F

expect of us,”
Slutkin says, and
that’s what we do.
In the right circumstances, “the
whole thing can
be escalated” into
mob action (the
fatal 2009 beating of Chicago’s
Fenger High
School junior Derrion Albert was
one example).
CeaseFire
was launched in
West Garfield
Park in 2000
as a program of
the UIC-based
Chicago Project for Violence
Prevention, and
the results were
impressive: the number of shootings in that area
dropped 67 percent during its first year of operation. By 2004, CeaseFire was bolstering its staff of
outreach workers with a new category of employees
it called “violence interrupters.” Recruited for their
street cred and often ex-offenders, the interrupters
were tasked with finding and heading off confrontations, mediating conflicts, talking aggrieved parties
down and preventing bloody acts of retribution. A
multiyear study sponsored by the U.S. Department
of Justice and published in 2008 found a 16 to
35 percent drop in shootings and killings directly
attributable to CeaseFire’s efforts. Now CeaseFire
Illinois has an $8 million annual budget (funded by
government and foundation grants) and employs
58 violence interrupters and 72 outreach workers.
Director Tio Hardiman says the program is being
replicated everywhere from Kansas City to Iraq.
Working out of Kartemquin Films, with an
$850,000 budget, James and Kotlowitz started
filming CeaseFire activity in the spring and summer of 2009 and shot through fall 2010. Operating
on call with as small a crew as possible (James as
cameraman, Kotlowitz interviewing, and Zak Piper
on sound), they focused on the lives and work of
three CeaseFire interrupters: Cobe Williams, Eddie
Bocanegra and Ameena Matthews (daughter of

Ameena Matthews works with CeaseFire
to reduce violence in Chicago.
PHOTO COURTESy OF KARTEMqUIN FILMS

Black P. Stone founder Jeff Fort). But they weren’t
trying to make a profile of the organization, Kotlowitz says. “We wanted to do something larger.
We wanted to take a probing look at the violence.
CeaseFire is a prism for that; the interrupters are our
eyes and ears.”
They wound up with 300 hours of life and strife
on the streets of Chicago that they were still editing
when organizers at Sundance convinced them to
bring the film to the 2011 festival as an official selection (which meant they weren’t in competition there).
The nearly three-hour version Sundance audiences
saw elicited enough complaints about length that
they subsequently chopped off 20 minutes. PBS’s
Frontline ran an even shorter two-hour version
in 2012.
Originally published in the Chicago Reader on
July 7, 2011.

Gambit > bestofneworleans.com > february 28 > 2012

ilmmaker Steve James and writer Alex Kotlowitz
have been buddies for years, so it’s not
surprising that James was interested in the
May 4, 2008, New York Times Magazine cover story
Kotlowitz wrote about CeaseFire, a social experiment
that treats chronic urban violence as a public health
problem. But James says the story resonated so deeply
that “when I read it, I called him right away and said this
could be a really strong documentary.”
Their film, The Interrupters, was shown at the
Sundance Film Festival in March 2011 and a shorter
version ran on PBS’ Frontline, and can be viewed in
its entirety on www.pbs.org. The city of New Orleans
is planning a public screening in March.
James’s first film, Hoop Dreams, came out of nowhere to win the 1994 audience award at Sundance.
It followed two aspiring basketball players — Arthur
Agee and William Gates — through high school,
chronicling their effort to escape Chicago’s impoverished ghettos by following Isiah Thomas’s path to
the NBA. The film became a classic, but in the years
after its release two of the most important people
in it fell victim to the violence CeaseFire addresses.
In 2001 Gates’s older brother (and first coach) was
fatally shot; in 2004 Agee’s father, a former drug addict, was murdered in his garage. No one has been
convicted in either case.
CeaseFire Illinois is the brainchild of University of
Illinois at Chicago physician Gary Slutkin, a University of Chicago-educated immunologist who battled
TB in San Francisco and then spent a decade in
Africa fighting AIDS and cholera. Returning to Chicago in the mid-1990s, Slutkin looked at the city’s
rampant violence (827 homicides in 1995), noted
its similarity to a disease outbreak, and concluded
that what the city had on its hands was something he
knew how to handle: an epidemic. In that case, as he
can be seen explaining on several videos available
online, the usual official response to violence —
more criminalization and jail time — would be akin to
the Dark Ages practice of punishing victims of the
plague. Science has shown that the way to stop an
epidemic, Slutkin says, is by “interrupting transmission” and “changing behavior.”
According to Slutkin, violence — which so often
appears instinctive and inevitable — is something
much more malleable: a learned behavior, acquired
mostly through unconscious copying and locked
in by social pressure. Like other behaviors — say
smoking or using condoms — the “principal driver”
is the peer-group norm. “We learn what our friends

Had visions become reality, Claire Boucher and her
college boyfriend might
today be living on a riverboat
somewhere just west of New
Orleans, perhaps settling
down between Plaquemine
and Donaldsonville at Pointe
Claire. She arrives this week
three years behind schedule —
an aborted voyage that began
with a shove off a Minneapolis
riverbank in June 2009, in
a ramshackle vessel with
chickens as cargo and a copy
of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn as their guide,
and ended abruptly downriver when sheriffs seized the
unseaworthy craft and sent
Huck and Tom back to school
in Montreal. If Boucher’s story
seems a little strange (even
for mod Mark Twain), wait until chapter two, in which Huck starts self-recording
synthesizer pop music, signs to progressive UK label 4AD, fields overtures from
Nylon and Vogue and releases the most
habit-forming album yet of 2012. Her new
Grimes
Mar
Visions takes only three tracks to realize:
4 p.m. Friday
“Infinite Love Without Fulfillment” puts
all the new elements in place, a mix of fat
Tulane University
bass bumps, cumulous synth calls and
Lavin-Bernick
that vaporous, secret-of-nymph voice; “GenCenter Quad
esis” elongates it over an intensifying round
robin of arpeggiated charms; and “Oblivion”
31 McAlister Drive
stages the big takeover by a self-harmonizing
314-2188
squad of future-sick Shangri-Las. Born
Gold opens. Free admission. — NOAH
www.tulane.edu
BONAPARTE PAIS

A CLOCKWORK ORANGE
(R) — in stanley Kubrick’s
film adaptation of anthony
burgess’s dystopian novel, a
young brit in jail agrees to be a
part of an experimental aversion
program for violent criminals.
Tickets $8. Midnight Friday-Saturday, Prytania Theatre, 5339
Prytania St., 891-2787; www.
theprytania.com

49

MEET NEW PEOPLE
WITH LESS PRESSURE

Go to a
St. Patrick’s
Day Parade
Do an
Absinthe
Tasting at
Pravda

Gambit > bestofneworleans.com > february 28 > 2012

Bike the
Tammany
Trace

POST & VIEW
YOUR FAVORITE

Go shopping
on
Magazine St.

Take a Salire
Fitness
Bootcamp

Get to know
each other
at Gambit’s
Food Revue

Take our
dogs to NOLA
City Bark

ACTIVITIES

MAKE PLANS
MEET NEW PEOPLE

TRY IT FOR FREE AT DATING.BESTOFNEWORLEANS.COM
Gambit has partnered with HowAboutWe
to revolutionize online dating. Now it’s all about getting offline

Hollywood doesn’t want you to know it, but the
new era of digital 3-D movies hasn’t exactly set
the world on fire. According to an analysis published last year by the online magazine Slate, revenues
from 3-D movies have declined steadily since James
Cameron’s 2009 Avatar became the highest-grossing
movie of all time. This isn’t really much of a surprise:
The culprits include exorbitant ticket prices, poor-quality 2-D to 3-D conversions, and
a string of bad movies shot or presented in 3-D for no discernable reason. Digital 3-D
hasn’t risen above novelty status because few filmmakers have found ways to make it
truly enhance their work and evolve the moviegoing experience — all of which makes
German director Wim Wenders’ new documentary Pina a welcome surprise.
Pina is about modern dance, specifically that of brilliant dance theater innovator
Philipinne “Pina” Bausch, which is bound to turn off potential viewers not especially
interested in the topic. But don’t let that keep you from seeing the film in a theater. Unlike
Avatar, it’s not going to translate well to its eventual 2-D edition on DVD. (You’ll need a
flat-screen and Blu-ray player that are both 3-D-enabled to get the full Pina experience
at home.) And don’t be surprised if film historians one day describe Pina as the Citizen
Kane of digital 3-D.
No one would say Pina expands film language in the manner of Orson Welles’ 1941
classic. But Pina matches new technology with appropriate content to create something
that looks entirely new. This wasn’t easy. For more than 20 years, Wenders searched for
a way to capture the choreographer’s magic on film. He finally saw that potential in digital
3-D. After a year-and-a-half of preparation, and two days before test shoots were to
begin with Bausch’s Tanztheater Wuppertal dance company, Bausch died. Her dancers
encouraged Wenders to make the film anyway, though he had planned to co-direct it
with Bausch. It was the last chance to preserve the choreographer’s work with her own
direct input visible on screen.
The resulting film is far from perfect. Pina is built around excerpts from four of
Bausch’s works, interspersed with short, original pieces in which individual company
members pay tribute to her. This piecemeal approach can’t generate the power of
Bausch’s full-length creations. And despite technical innovations that allow the 3-D
camera to move with the dancers in extraordinary close-up and place the viewer deep
inside the work, Pina doesn’t fully pass the novelty test. We only forget about the 3-D
thing intermittently. But when form and content come together here, as they frequently
do, Pina is nothing short of dazzling.
Most important, Pina looks like a starting point. Wenders, who’s known for soulful
narrative movies like Wings of Desire and Paris, Texas, and for his smash-hit documentary Buena Vista Social Club, plans on spending the next several years working on a
3-D documentary on architecture — another subject that exists only in three dimensions.
Here’s hoping Hollywood figures out how to make digital 3-D work creatively for mainstream movies. Pina’s effective use of the medium opens a door for other filmmakers.
Let’s see who can walk through it. — KEN KORMAN

History isn’t what it used to be. Once,
historical figures were summed up in
a few choice words. Andrew Jackson
was the hero of the Battle of New Orleans. Robert E. Lee was the courtly
Southerner who opposed secession
but commanded the Confederate
army anyway. In retrospect, those
views seem simplistic, so it’s no surprise artists might try to revise some of
the more prominent historical monuments around town. Ron Bechet’s
proposal for A More Accurate
Jackson Monument features some
bedraggled Native Americans in front
of his equestrian statue in Jackson
Square, a reminder that Jackson was
“instrumental in removing over 70,000
Native Americans from their lands.”
Then there’s the towering Robert E.
Lee monument at Lee Circle, where
the general symbolically faces north.
But maybe he was just trying to get his
bearings, because the more we learn
about Lee, the more conflicted he
seemed. Zakcq Lockrem addresses
those identity issues with a distinctive
graphical rendering of the site showing additional complementary statues
of Harper Lee, Stan Lee, Bruce Lee
and Spike Lee, persuasively noting
that the city of Mostar, Bosnia, erected
a statue of Bruce Lee as a symbol of
its fight against ethnic divisions in the wake of the Bosnian War. Unlike
monu_MENTAL
THRU
Robert E. Lee, Confederate President Jefferson Davis was consisSaturday-Sunday
Mar
tent to a fault — actually, many faults — so Max Cafard and Stephen
Antenna Gallery
Duplantier’s plan to replace his Mid-City statue with an Angela Davis
on Angela Davis Parkway (pictured) can be seen as a timely rotation of
3161 Burgundy St.
revolutionaries, substituting the Black Panthers for the Confederacy
250-7975
in the annals of lost causes. But even before the Confederacy, this city
www.press-street.com
was where Benito Juarez launched the revolution that enabled him to
become Mexico’s first Native American president (see “Blake Pontchartrain,” Gambit, Feb. 21), as Paulina Sierra’s complex mixed-media piece reminds us, and it is gratifying
that at least one former New Orleanian led a revolution that was widely acknowledged as having changed the
course of history, mostly for the better. — D. ERIC BOOKHARDT

04

2331 St. Claude Ave., 5252767; www.barristersgallery.
com — “Post Cards From Long
Island,” a group show of the
Adelphi University art faculty curated by Christopher Saucedo,
through Saturday.

THE GEORGES GALLERY.
Metairie Park Country Day
School, 300 Park Road, Metairie, 837-5204; www.mpcds.com
— “The Healing Power of Art,”
works by Beverly Morris and
artists from the Louisiana Art
Therapy Association, through
March 12.

call for
artists
MICHAEL P. SMITH FUND
FOR DOCUMENTARY
PHOTOGRAPHY. the New
Orleans Photo Alliance awards a
$5,000 grant to a photographer
residing in Gulf Coast states.
Visit www.neworleansphotoalliance.org for details. Application
deadline is March 30.
ST. TAMMANY ART ASSOCIATION. the organization
seeks entries for its annual
National Juried Artists Exhibition, which opens July 14 and
is judged by New Orleans
Museum of Art modern and
contemporary art curator
Miranda Lash. Email info@
sttammanyartassociation.org or
visit www.sttammanyartassociation.org for details. Submissions
deadline is March 31.

LOUISIANA SUPREME COURT MUSEUM. Louisiana Supreme Court, 400
Royal St., 310-2149; www.lasc.org — the
Supreme Court of Louisiana Historical
Society sponsors the museum’s exhibitions
of the people and institutions that have contributed to the development of Louisiana
law for 300 years.
MUSEUM OF THE AMERICAN
COCKTAIL. 1 Poydras St., Suite 169,
569-0405; www.museumoftheamericancocktail.org — “Absinthe Visions,” photographs by Damian Hevia, ongoing.
NEW ORLEANS MUSEUM OF ART.
City Park, 1 Collins Diboll Circle, 6584100; www.noma.org — the Dorothy and
Herbert Vogel Collection, through April 8.
“Self-taught Artists from NOMA’s Permanent Collection,” an exhibition curated by
Alice Yelen, through April 15. “Hard truths:
the Art of thornton Dial,” through May
20. “Mass Produced: technology in 19th
Century English Design,” through June
24. “Forever,” mural by Odili Donald Odita,
through Oct. 7.
NEWCOMB ART GALLERY. Woldenberg Art Center, Tulane University, 8655328; www.newcombartgallery.tulane.
edu — “tamarind touchstones: Fabulous
at Fifty,” a retrospective exhibition of lithographs from the tamarind Institute, through
April 15.

OGDEN MUSEUM OF SOUTHERN
ART. 925 Camp St., 539-9600; www.
ogdenmuseum.org — “the Created World
of Enrique Alferez,” sculpture and works
on paper by the artist, through April 2.
“the Past Still Present,” photographs by
David Halliday; “the Shape of Louisiana
Commenting on the Shape of Louisiana,”
assemblages by Jimmy Descant, through
April 8.

OPERA
ThEATER
BEAUTY. The Hatchery’s
Garret Theater, 4210 St.
Claude Ave., second floor —
levy easterly stars in steven
patterson’s solo show, which
uses Jean genet’s early works
to create a disturbing biography
of the french novelist’s years
in prison. Call 948-4167 for
reservations. tickets are $10
or “pay what you can.” 8 p.m.
friday-saturday, 5 p.m. sunday,
through march 10.

WORLD AFFAIRS COUNCIL
OF NEW ORLEANS PUB
NIGHT. Irish House, 1432
Saint Charles Ave., 595-6755;
www.theirishhouseneworleans.
com — the group hosts a
casual networking event at
the gastropub. email sheila@

Great Writers Series

A Reading by

Jonathan Franzen
National Book Award Winner
McAlister Auditorium
Tulane University
Monday, March 5th 2012
7:00pm
Free and open to the public

This event is sponsored by
the Creative Writing Fund
of the Department of English
For more information call: 865-5160

Gambit > bestofneworleans.com > february 28 > 2012

special activities for Cub
and boy scouts and
their families, including
morse Code practice,
wwii plane spotting and
a scavenger hunt in the
museum galleries. admission free for those in scout
uniforms, reduced admission for families and troop
leaders. 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
MUSIC FOR ALL AGES.
Armstrong Park, N. Rampart and St. Ann streets
— Children are invited to
bring their instruments and
play with a professional
brass band for the music
workshop and concert. 11
a.m. to noon.

Why is Tom’s Wife Smiling?
And the simple trick he used to
help him perform like a 20 year
old! Without drugs, pumps, or
embarrassing doctor visits.
By, Stefan Rothler; Freelance Health Writer;

If you’re like Tom, you know how frustrating it is when you
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Tom’s Story:
Tom M. had a big problem. His love-life was “coming up
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The Secret of the Adult Film Industry
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2/24/12 1:05 PM

Gambit > bestofneworleans.com > february 28 > 2012

As Tom continued his research, he came across
something unusual. He read that male actors in the adult
film industry use something called “Herbal Virility”. Before
filming, the actors would pop one of these tiny pills in
their mouth--- so when the director yells “action”- there’s
always plenty of it!

Herbal Virility contains all 25 of the most potent natural
male enhancement boosters on earth. It helps kick-start
your body’s natural ability to produce nitric oxide on its
own. So you’re ready for action when you want it --- and as
often as you want it. You’ll get a “big boost” of confidence
in the bedroom. And your wife will be so excited she may
wake up the neighbors!

4640 Canal St., 488-2651 —
Bread for the World hosts the
4-mile walk, where the group
will also collect non-perishable food items for Second
Harvest Food Bank. Registration is $15 general admission,
$10 children 7 and under (includes T-shirt). Call 458-3029
or email jfremson@loyno.edu
for details. Registration at 8
a.m., walk at 9:30 a.m.

pete in the fashion show
benefit for the Louisiana
SPCA that also features
speciality cocktails, hors
d’oeuvres and an auction.
Call 762-3307 or visit www.
la-spca.org/alegria for
details. Admission starts at
$25. 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.
CELEBRATION OF INNOVATION. Castine Center,
Pelican Park, 63350 Pelican Drive, Mandeville, (985)
626-7997 — WDSU chief
meteorologist Margaret Orr
and former WWL sports
director Jim Henderson are
the masters of ceremony at
the fundraiser benefiting the
Children’s Museum of St.
Tammany. The event also
features live entertainment,
food and drinks from local
restaurants, auctions and
more. Call (985) 789-0822
or visit www.jlgc.net for details. Tickets start at $100. 6
p.m. to 10 p.m.
ROCK ’N’ ROLL MARATHON & HALF-MARATHON. The marathon and
half-marathon benefiting the
American Cancer Society
features a performance
by Rockin’ Dopsie Jr. and
the Zydeco Twisters. The
races start at Poydras and
Camp Streets and end at
Roosevelt Mall in City Park.
Visit www.competitor.com
for details. 7 a.m.

Call for
aPPlICaTIonS
COMMUNITY OUTREACH
TICKETS. New Orleans Jazz
and Heritage Festival and
Foundation makes available
free tickets to the festival
to low-income Louisiana
residents. The foundation
distributes the tickets through
social service organizations
who can apply to receive
them. Call 558-6100 or email
programs@jazzandheritage.
org for details. Application
deadline is Thursday.
FRIENDS OF THE CABILDO
TOUR GUIDE TRAINING. Interested students can apply for
the group’s training classes to
become licensed tour guides
in New Orleans. Classes begin
Monday. Call 523-3939 or

visit www.friendsofthecabildo.
org for details.
LOUISIANA BAR FOUNDATION KIDS’ CHANCE
SCHOLARSHIPS. The
foundation offers scholarships to Louisiana residents
ages 16-25 who are dependents of a worker killed
or permanently disabled.
Visit www.raisingthebar.org
for details. The application
deadline is Tuesday.
SALUTE TO SENIOR SERVICE. Home Instead Senior
Care seeks nominations for
a senior citizen (65 or older)
who does at least 15 hours of
volunteer work a month. The
winner receives, among other
things, a $5,000 donation to
the charity of his or her choice.
Email ckoehler@homeinsteadinc.com or visit www.
salutetoseniorservice.com for
details. Application deadline is
March 15.

• For all Line Ads - Thurs. @ 5 p.m.
• For all Display Ads - Wed. @ 5 p.m.
Note: Ad cancellations and changes for all display ads must be made by Wednesday at 5 pm
prior to the next issue date. Ad cancellations
and changes for all line ads must be made by
Thursday at 5 pm prior to the next issue date.
Please proof your first ad insertion to make
sure it is correct. Gambit only takes responsibility for the first incorrect insertion.

NOTICE

Massage therapists are required to
be licensed with the State of Louisiana
and must include the license number
in their ads.
Jeannie LMT #3783-01. Flexible
appointments. Uptown Studio or Hotel
out calls. 504.894.8856 (uptown)

Are you bothered by blemishes? Would
You Like to participate in a Clinical Research Study Testing an Investigational
Lotion that may temporarily diminish or
Eliminate Forehead Acne? See our ad
in today’s Bulletin Board section.

Become a part of the team!
Applications for this exciting opportunity
are being accepted beginning February 27th
for the following positions:
Line cooks (hot and cold line)
Prep Cook, Pastry Cook,
Captain, Front and Backwaiter, Cocktail Server
Food Runners, Stocker/Polishers
Host/Hostesses, Maître d, and Bartender
Send your letter of interest and resume to:
www.employment@royalsonestano.com

Basset/Corgi mix who knows how to sit,
enjoys belly rubs and is housetrained.
Sammy LOVES treats so much that he’s
currently doing his own version of The
Biggest Loser—Doggy Style. To meet
Sammy or any of the other wonderful
pets at the LA/SPCA, come to 1700
Mardi Gras Blvd. (Algiers), 10-4, Mon.Sat. & 12-4 Sun. or call 368-5191.

SAMMY
Kennel #A15046442

JONES
Kennel #A15417932

Jones is a 1-year-old, neutered,
DSH, with AMAZINGLY unusual grey
tabby markings. He thoroughly
enjoys having his chin rubbed
between lounging around all day.
To meet Jones or any of the other
wonderful pets at the LA/SPCA,
come to 1700 Mardi Gras Blvd.
(Algiers), 10-4, Mon.-Sat. & 12-4
Sun. or call 368-5191.
To look for a lost pet
come to the Louisiana SPCA,
1700 Mardi Gras Blvd. (Algiers),
Mon-Sat. 9-5, Sun. 12-5
or call 368-5191 or visit
www.la-spca.org

All real estate advertised herein is subject
to the Federal Fair Housing Act and the
Louisiana Open Housing Act, which makes
it illegal to advertise any preference, limitation or discrimination because of race, color,
religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or
national origin, or intention to make any
such preference, limitation or discrimination.
We will not knowingly accept any advertising
for real estate which is in violation of the
law. For more information, call the Louisiana
Attorney General’s Office at 1-800-273-5718

927 DAUPHINE STREET
$1,895,000
An excellent example of an early
creole cottage set in a serene
compound. Beautiful courtyard with
mature plantings in a classic partere
garden. Property consists of the main
house, 4 income producing apartments and a large bonus space-- office, workshop, gym, etc. Parking for
multiple cars. Great location.